Vertically Aligned Gold Nanowires as Stretchable and Wearable Epidermal Ion-Selective Electrode for Noninvasive Multiplexed Sweat Analysis

Anal Chem. 2020 Mar 17;92(6):4647-4655. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c00274. Epub 2020 Feb 27.

Abstract

The noninvasive continuous analysis of human sweat is of great significance for improved healthcare diagnostics and treatment in the future, for which a wearable potentiometry-based ion-selective electrode (ISE) has attracted increasing attention, particularly involving ion detection. Note that traditional solid-state ISE electrodes are rigid ion-to-electron transducers that are not conformal to soft human skin and cannot function under stretched states. Here, we demonstrated that vertically aligned mushroom-like gold nanowires (v-AuNW) could serve as stretchable and wearable ion-to-electron transducers for multiplexed, in situ potentiometric analysis of pH, Na+, and K+ in sweat. By modifying v-AuNW electrodes with polyaniline, Na ionophore X, and a valinomycin-based selective membrane, we could specifically detect pH, Na+, and K+, respectively, with high selectivity, reproducibility, and stability. Importantly, the electrochemical performance could be maintained even under 30% strain and during stretch-release cycles without the need of extrinsic structural design. Furthermore, our stretchable v-AuNW ISEs could be seamlessly integrated with a flexible printed circuit board, enabling wireless on-body detection of pH, Na+, and K+ with fast response and negligible cross-talk, indicating considerable promise for noninvasive wearable sweat analysis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biosensing Techniques*
  • Electrodes
  • Gold / chemistry*
  • Humans
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Nanowires / chemistry*
  • Sweat / chemistry*
  • Wearable Electronic Devices*

Substances

  • Gold