Electrochemical Sensing of Doxorubicin in Breast Cancer Cells Based on Membrane-Permeation Strategy

Monitoring the concentration of doxorubicin (DOX) was critical for tumor treatment, but existing methods failed to cross cell membrane. Here, an electrochemical platform for intracellular DOX detection in MCF-7 cells based on membrane-permeation strategy was developed. A modified gold electrode was prepared via electrodepositing AuNPs and assembling SH-DNA. Concurrently, the silica nanosphere/gold nanocluster-circular transmembrane peptide (SiO₂/AuNCs-iRGD) composite nanoparticles with membrane permeability, tumor targeting, and imaging capability were synthesized. After co-incubation of SiO₂/AuNCs-iRGD with MCF-7 cells and DOX, followed by co-incubation with the DNA-modified electrode, intracellular DOX intercalated into the DNA backbone, and redox-generated electrons were transferred to the electrode to produce a concentration-correlated electrochemical signal. The modification of the electrode, the morphology of the composite nanoparticles and the detection process were characterized by means of SEM, TEM, CV, EIS, DPV, fluorescence spectroscopy and laser confocal imaging. Under the optimized conditions, the proposed method exhibited a wide detection range of 0.05-300 μmol/L, with a detection limit of 0.01 μmol/L. Moreover, the modified electrode demonstrated satisfactory regenerability, and the proposed method showed excellent reproducibility and stability. The development platform could offer a new strategy for real-time assessment of drug concentration within cultured breast cancer cells in vitro.