An Immunocolorimetric Sensing System for Highly Sensitive and High-Throughput Detection of BNP with Carbon-Gold Nanocomposites Amplification

Conventional immunocolorimetric sensing of biomolecules continues to be challenged with low sensitivity although its wide application as a diagnostic tool in medicine and biotechnology. Herein, we present a multifunctional immunocolorimetric sensing system for sensitive and high-throughput detection of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) with carbon-gold nanocomposite (CGNs) amplification. Using a “green” strategy, monodisperse carbon nanospheres (CNs) were successfully synthesized by glucose carbonization. A simple and efficient hydrothermal method was developed to assemble abundant gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) onto the surfaces of CNs. The resulting CGNs were characterized and utilized for biomarker detection with superior properties of easy manufacturing, good biocompatibility, satisfactory chemical stability, and high loading capacity for biomolecules. As a proof of concept, the as-prepared CGNs were conjugated with horseradish peroxidase-labeled antibody against BNP (CGNs@AntiBNP-HRP) functioning as the carrier, signal amplifier, and detector for the sensitive detection of BNP. Under optimal conditions, the established CGNs@AntiBNP-HRP immunoprobe remarkably enhanced the detection performance of BNP, achieving signal amplification of more than 9 times compared to the conventional method. Based on our self-developed bionic electronic eye (e-Eye) and CGNs@AntiBNP-HRP immunoprobe, the multifunctional sensing system displayed a wide dynamic linear range of 3.9–500 ng/mL and a LOD of 0.640 ng/mL for BNP detection with high specificity, good accuracy and reproducibility. This portable sensing system with enhanced performance demonstrates great potential for BNP detection in point of care applications, and offers a universal and reliable platform for in vitro biomarker detection.