Nanoparticle (NP)-decorated carbon nanotubes or graphenes (GRPs) have attracted attention because of their synergic properties such as enhanced electrical conductivity, magneto-optical effect, and plasmon resonance energy transfer. These hybrid carbon nanomaterials are widely used in sensing platforms to monitor target biomolecules, gases, and chemicals. In this study, binary nanoparticles, specifically gold (Au)/magnetic nanoparticle (MNP)-decorated graphenes (GRPs), were applied in a virus-sensing platform. This hybrid material exhibited multiple functionalities, including magnetic, plasmonic, and enhanced electrical properties. The Au/MNP-GRPs were synthesized in two steps at room temperature under mild conditions and magnetically deposited on a Pt-interdigitated electrode as electrical-sensing channels. After deposition onto the electrode, the surface of Au/MNP-GRPs was conjugated with norovirus antibody to produce a norovirus-like particle (NoV-LP)-sensing platform. NoV-LPs were successfully detected by the hybrid nanomaterial-sensing platform, exhibiting high sensitivity and specificity in a concentration range from 0.01 pg to 1 ng. In this case, the limit of detection was calculated as 1.16 pg/mL. Thus, the binary nanoparticle-decorated graphene shows excellent potential as an electrical-sensing platform for biomolecules.
Keywords: Au/MNP-decorated graphene; Norovirus-like particle; binary nanoparticle-decorated graphene; electrical biosensor; magnetically deposited sensing channel.