A direct MIP-interfaced FET sensor for sensitive, selective, and real time biomolecule detection in unamplified samples: Toward POC bioelectronic transduction

Abstract

Diverse efforts undertaken to mitigate the Debye screening effect of field-effect transistor (FET) biosensors have achieved higher sensitivity. However, the charge transfer or induction mechanism between the captured biomolecules and the sensing surface, resulting in shift of surface potential and, hence, the drain current magnitude, shows poor selectivity for real time detection of ultra-low biomolecule concentration in unamplified samples. Herein, enabling direct interaction of the target molecule with edge passivated thermally reduced graphene oxide, through the template of molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP), specific trap induced characteristic bulges in the noise spectrum has been observed only in the presence of target molecule. Such a phenomenon has not been observed either with antibodies or aptamers as receptors. Hence, the direct interface of MIP with a graphene FET (GFET) results in the generation of an additional electronic label in FET transduction. As a proof of concept, this principle has been validated for serotonin detection in serum in the presence of other neurotransmitters, resulting in detection limit of 0.05 fM in real time, which is more than two orders of magnitude lower than existing reports and, hence, is expected to pave the way for advancing GFET based sensors toward ultrasensitive point-of-care applications without requiring complex machine learning algorithms.