Photoelectrochemical (Bio)sensors for Biological, Food, and Environmental Analysis

A special issue of Chemosensors (ISSN 2227-9040). This special issue belongs to the section "(Bio)chemical Sensing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2023) | Viewed by 25279

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China
2. School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510276, China
Interests: electrochemical sensors and materials; wearable devices
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Centre of Advanced Analytical Science, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China
Interests: electrochemical biosensors; signal amplification; point-of-care testing and in vitro diagnosis; controlled/”living” radical polymerization

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) (bio)sensors are a new class of analytical devices operating on the basis of the PEC properties of materials. Because of their merits of such as high sensitivity, easy miniaturization, and simple instruments, PEC (bio)sensors have found widespread applications in disease diagnostics, biomedical research, food security, environmental monitoring, etc.

In the presence of nucleic acids (or their artificial analogues), antibodies, aptamers, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs), enzymes, synthetic substrates, and some other affinity receptors as the recognition elements, PEC (bio)sensors can be applied to the (bio)sensing of various biological targets (e.g., nucleic acids, proteins, enzymes, antigens, exosomes, and pathogenic microorganisms), metabolites (e.g., ATP, amino acids, neurotransmitters, and hormones), food/beverage/cosmetic ingredients (e.g., vitamins, additives, antioxidants, mineral salts, toxins, and antibiotic/pesticide residues), environmental pollutants (heavy metal ions, pesticide residues, and toxic gases).

In recent years, great effort has been focused on the development of functional materials with desirable PEC properties (e.g., excellent light-harvesting ability, high photoelectric conversion efficiency, and high mobility of charge carriers). Various photoactive materials include metal oxides (e.g., TiO2, ZnO, and WO3), metal chalcogenides (e.g., CdS, Bi2S3, and CuS), quantum dots, organic small molecules, and organic polymers. To overcome the possible defects of a single material, versatile composites have been constructed to heterojunctions for improving PEC response sensitivity and selectivity to a specific analyte of interest.

This Special Issue of Chemosensors focusses on the design and development of PEC (bio)sensors, especially their applications in biological, food, and environmental analysis. We look forward to receiving papers on the relevant topics.

Dr. Li Niu
Dr. Qiong Hu
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • Photoelectrochemical (bio)sensors
  • Novel materials for photoelectrochemical (bio)sensing
  • Novel photoelectrochemical (bio)sensing principles
  • Immunosensors
  • Imprinted polymers
  • Functional nanomaterials
  • Semiconductor nanomaterials
  • Heterojunctions
  • Aptasensors
  • Disease diagnostics
  • Environmental analysis
  • Food analysis
  • Air pollutants

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 4315 KiB  
Article
Preparation of Thermo-Sensitive Molecular Imprinted SERS Substrate with Robust Recyclability for Detection of Ofloxacin
by Caiyun Jiang, Ting Wu, Xin He, Yuping Wang and Hong-zhen Lian
Chemosensors 2022, 10(11), 437; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10110437 - 24 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1919
Abstract
To this day, the preparation of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates with high sensitivity, selectivity, and stability has been the bottleneck to realizing SERS-based quantitative analysis in practical applications. In this paper, a thermo-sensitive imprinting SERS substrate material (TM@TiO2@Ag) is developed [...] Read more.
To this day, the preparation of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates with high sensitivity, selectivity, and stability has been the bottleneck to realizing SERS-based quantitative analysis in practical applications. In this paper, a thermo-sensitive imprinting SERS substrate material (TM@TiO2@Ag) is developed with a uniform structure and morphology, a controllable “hot spot” and photocatalytic regeneration. The as-prepared TM@TiO2@Ag nanocomposite is characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, dynamic light scattering, ultraviolet–visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, etc. After the effects of its thermo-sensitive property on localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) and SERS signals are investigated, this nanomaterial is used as the Raman-enhanced substrate for rapid and trace detection of ofloxacin (OFL) in water. It is found that, with the aid of unique structure and composition, temperature sensitivity, and molecule imprinting, the SERS sensor possesses considerably strong anti-interference ability not only to structure-unlike but also to structure-like co-existing substances, extremely low detectable concentration of 1.1 × 1011 M for OFL at 1397 cm−1, as well as excellent reusability due to its photocatalytic degradation to target analytes. Full article
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12 pages, 3028 KiB  
Article
Self-Powered Photoelectrochemical Assay for Hg2+ Detection Based on g-C3N4-CdS-CuO Composites and Redox Cycle Signal Amplification Strategy
by Yonghuan Su, Lixia Su, Bingqian Liu, Youxiu Lin and Dianping Tang
Chemosensors 2022, 10(7), 286; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10070286 - 18 Jul 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2299
Abstract
A highly sensitive self-powered photoelectrochemical (spPEC) sensing platform was constructed for Hg2+ determination based on the g-C3N4-CdS-CuO co-sensitized photoelectrode and a visible light-induced redox cycle for signal amplification. Through successively coating the single-layer g-C3N4, [...] Read more.
A highly sensitive self-powered photoelectrochemical (spPEC) sensing platform was constructed for Hg2+ determination based on the g-C3N4-CdS-CuO co-sensitized photoelectrode and a visible light-induced redox cycle for signal amplification. Through successively coating the single-layer g-C3N4, CdS, and CuO onto the surface of an electrode, the modified electrode exhibited significantly enhanced PEC activity. The microstructure of the material was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). However, the boost in photocurrent could be noticeably suppressed due to the consumption of hole-scavenging agents (reduced glutathione) by the added Hg2+. Under optimal conditions, we discovered that the photocurrent was linearly related to the Hg2+ concentration in the range of 5 pM–100 nM. The detection limit for Hg2+ was 0.84 pM. Moreover, the spPEC sensor demonstrated good performance for the detection of mercury ions in human urine and artificial saliva. Full article
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14 pages, 3066 KiB  
Article
An Enzyme-Free Photoelectrochemical Sensor Platform for Ascorbic Acid Detection in Human Urine
by Zhengzheng Zhao, Dongfang Han, Ren Xiao, Tianqi Wang, Zhishan Liang, Zhifang Wu, Fangjie Han, Dongxue Han, Yingming Ma and Li Niu
Chemosensors 2022, 10(7), 268; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10070268 - 11 Jul 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2547
Abstract
A novel enzyme-free photoelectrochemical (PEC) potential measurement system based on Dy-OSCN was designed for ascorbic acid (AA) detection. The separation and transmission of internal carriers were accelerated and the chemical properties became more stable under light excitation due to the regular microstructure of [...] Read more.
A novel enzyme-free photoelectrochemical (PEC) potential measurement system based on Dy-OSCN was designed for ascorbic acid (AA) detection. The separation and transmission of internal carriers were accelerated and the chemical properties became more stable under light excitation due to the regular microstructure of the prepared Dy-OSCN monocrystal. More importantly, the PEC potential method (OCPT, open circuit potential-time) used in this work was conducive to the reduction of photoelectric corrosion and less interference introduced during the detection process, which effectively ensured the repeatability and stability of the electrode. Under optimal conditions, the monocrystal successfully served as a matrix for the detection of AA, and the prepared PEC sensor exhibited a wide linear range from 7.94 × 10−6 mol/L to 1.113 × 10−2 mol/L and a sensitive detection limit of 3.35 μM. Practical human urine sample analysis further revealed the accuracy and feasibility of the Dy-OSCN-based PEC platform. It is expected that such a PEC sensor would provide a new way for rapid and non-invasive AA level assessment in human body constitution monitoring and lays a foundation for the further development of practical products. Full article
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15 pages, 3278 KiB  
Article
Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Functionalized Bi2S3/Ti3C2TX MXene Nanocomposites for Photoelectrochemical/Electrochemical Dual-Mode Sensing of Chlorogenic Acid
by Zhenli Qiu, Dechun Fan, Xianghang Xue, Shujun Guo, Youxiu Lin, Yiting Chen and Dianping Tang
Chemosensors 2022, 10(7), 252; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10070252 - 29 Jun 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2992
Abstract
We report the proof-of-concept of molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) functionalized Bi2S3/Ti3C2TX MXene nanocomposites for photoelectrochemical (PEC)/electrochemical (EC) dual-mode sensing of chlorogenic acid (CGA). Specifically, the in-situ growth of the Bi2S3/Ti3C [...] Read more.
We report the proof-of-concept of molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) functionalized Bi2S3/Ti3C2TX MXene nanocomposites for photoelectrochemical (PEC)/electrochemical (EC) dual-mode sensing of chlorogenic acid (CGA). Specifically, the in-situ growth of the Bi2S3/Ti3C2TX MXene served as a transducer substrate for molecularly imprinted polymers such as PEC and EC signal generators, due to its high surface area, suitable bandwidth and abundant active sites. In addition, the chitosan as a binder was encapsulated into MIP by means of phase inversion on a fluorine-doped tin dioxide (FTO) electrode. In the determination of CGA as an analytical model, the dual-mode sensor based on MIP functionalized Bi2S3/Ti3C2TX MXene nanocomposites had good selectivity, excellent stability and acceptable reproducibility, which displayed a linear concentration range from 0.0282 μM to 2824 μM for the PEC signal and 0.1412 μM to 22.59 μM for the EC signal with a low detection limit of 2.4 nM and 43.1 nM, respectively. Importantly, two dual-response mode with different transduction mechanisms could mutually conform to dramatically raise the reliability and accuracy of detection compared to single-mode detection. This work is a breakthrough for the design of dual-mode sensors and will provide a reasonable basis for the construction of dual-mode sensor platforms. Full article
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12 pages, 2627 KiB  
Article
A Laser-Induced Photoelectrochemical Sensor for Natural Sweat Cu2+ Detection
by Shubo Zhang, Yanwen Liu, Juan Wang and Zhihong Liu
Chemosensors 2022, 10(5), 169; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10050169 - 2 May 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3550
Abstract
Tracking fluctuations in the Cu2+ level in sweat is meaningful for non-invasive and real-time assessment of Cu2+-abnormality-related diseases and provides important diagnostic information. However, the user-unfriendly ways to obtain sweat and sweat biofouling have limited the development of this field. [...] Read more.
Tracking fluctuations in the Cu2+ level in sweat is meaningful for non-invasive and real-time assessment of Cu2+-abnormality-related diseases and provides important diagnostic information. However, the user-unfriendly ways to obtain sweat and sweat biofouling have limited the development of this field. Herein, we exploit a highly sensitive photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensor as a detection method, a powerful laser engraving technique for the large-scale fabrication of laser-induced graphene and In-doped CdS (LIG-In-CdS) photoelectrodes, and a hydrophilic porous polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogel for natural sweat collection for fingertip touch sweat Cu2+ monitoring. The proposed sensor has several very attractive features: (i) the LIG-In-CdS photoelectrode with high photoelectric conversion efficiency can be produced by a cheap 450 nm semiconductor laser system; (ii) the sensor performs Cu2+ detection with a wide linear range of 1.28 ng/mL~5.12 μg/mL and good selectivity; (iii) the PVA hydrogel possesses an excellent antifouling effect ability and a rapid natural sweat collection ability; and (iv) the sensor exhibits feasibility and good reliability for PEC sensing of sweat Cu2+. Thus, these advantages endow the proposed method with a great deal of potential for smart monitoring of heavy metals in sweat in the future. Full article
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12 pages, 2752 KiB  
Article
A Simple Ratiometric Electrochemical Aptasensor Based on the Thionine–Graphene Nanocomposite for Ultrasensitive Detection of Aflatoxin B2 in Peanut and Peanut Oil
by Fan Jia, Yuye Li, Qingfa Gong, Dong Liu, Shuyun Meng, Chengxi Zhu and Tianyan You
Chemosensors 2022, 10(5), 154; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10050154 - 21 Apr 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2635
Abstract
The accurate and reliable analysis of aflatoxin B2 (AFB2) is widely required in food and agricultural industries. In the present work, we report the first use of a ratiometric electrochemical aptasensor for AFB2 detection with high selectivity and reliability. The working principle relies [...] Read more.
The accurate and reliable analysis of aflatoxin B2 (AFB2) is widely required in food and agricultural industries. In the present work, we report the first use of a ratiometric electrochemical aptasensor for AFB2 detection with high selectivity and reliability. The working principle relies on the conformation change of the aptamer induced by its specific recognition of AFB2 to vary the ratiometric signal. Based on this principle, the proposed aptasensor collects currents generated by thionine–graphene composites (ITHI) and ferrocene-labeled aptamers (IFc) to output the ratiometric signal of ITHI/IFc. In analysis, the value of ITHI remained stable while that of IFc increased with higher AFB2 concentration, thus offering a “signal-off” aptasensor by using ITHI/IFc as a yardstick. The fabricated aptasensor showed a linear range of 0.001–10 ng mL−1 with a detection limit of 0.19 pg mL−1 for AFB2 detection. Furthermore, its applicability was validated by using it to detect AFB2 in peanut and peanut oil samples with high rates of recovery. The developed ratiometric aptasensor shows the merits of simple fabrication and high accuracy, and it can be extended to detect other mycotoxins in agricultural products. Full article
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Review

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20 pages, 4819 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances in Photoelectrochemical Sensors for Analysis of Toxins and Abused Drugs in the Environment
by Yan Mao, Xiaoxin Liu, Yu Bao and Li Niu
Chemosensors 2023, 11(7), 412; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors11070412 - 22 Jul 2023
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2567
Abstract
Toxic pollutants in the environment, such as toxins and abused drugs, have posed a major threat to human health and ecosystem security. It is extremely desirable to develop simple, low-cost, sensitive, and reliable techniques for the detection of these pollutants in the environment. [...] Read more.
Toxic pollutants in the environment, such as toxins and abused drugs, have posed a major threat to human health and ecosystem security. It is extremely desirable to develop simple, low-cost, sensitive, and reliable techniques for the detection of these pollutants in the environment. As a booming analytical method, photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensors possess low background noise and high sensitivity. The performances of PEC sensors are fundamentally related to the photoelectric conversion efficiency, which mainly depends on the properties of photoactive materials. This review aims to summarize the engineered photoactive materials, i.e., semiconductors and semiconductor-based heterojunctions, as well as their actual applications, with emphasis on sensing mechanisms in PEC sensors for the analysis of toxins and abused drugs in the environment. Finally, the future research perspectives in this field are also discussed. Full article
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26 pages, 915 KiB  
Review
Emerging Role of Biosensors and Chemical Indicators to Monitor the Quality and Safety of Meat and Meat Products
by Pramod Kumar Nanda, Dipanwita Bhattacharya, Jyotishka Kumar Das, Samiran Bandyopadhyay, Daniel Ekhlas, Jose M. Lorenzo, Premanshu Dandapat, Laura Alessandroni, Arun K. Das and Mohammed Gagaoua
Chemosensors 2022, 10(8), 322; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors10080322 - 11 Aug 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 5604
Abstract
The meat industry requires prompt and effective control measures to guarantee the quality and safety of its products and to avert the incidence of foodborne illnesses and disease outbreaks. Although standard microbiological methods and conventional analytical techniques are employed to monitor the quality [...] Read more.
The meat industry requires prompt and effective control measures to guarantee the quality and safety of its products and to avert the incidence of foodborne illnesses and disease outbreaks. Although standard microbiological methods and conventional analytical techniques are employed to monitor the quality and safety, these procedures are tedious and time-consuming, require skilled technicians, and sophisticated instruments. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop simple, fast, and user-friendly hand-held devices for real-time monitoring of the quality of meat and meat products in the supply chain. Biosensors and chemical indicators, due to their high sensitivity, specificity, reproducibility, and stability, are emerging as promising tools and have the potential for monitoring and controlling the quality (freshness and sensory traits such as tenderness) and safety (metabolites, contaminants, pathogens, drug residues, etc.) of muscle foods. In this review, the application of biosensors in the meat industry and their emerging role in the quantification of key meat quality components are discussed. Furthermore, the role of different biosensors to identify and detect contaminants, adulterants, pathogens, antibiotics, and drug residues in meat and meat products is also summarized. Full article
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