Synthesis and characterization of reduced graphene oxide supported gold nanoparticles-poly(pyrrole-co-pyrrolepropylic acid) nanocomposite-based electrochemical biosensor.

A conducting poly(pyrrole-co-pyrrolepropylic acid) copolymer nanocomposite film (AuNP-PPy-PPa) incorporating gold nanoparticles (AuNP) was electrochemically grown using a single step procedure over electrochemically reduced graphene oxide (RGO) flakes deposited on a silane-modified indium-tin-oxide (ITO) glass plate. The RGO support base provided excellent mechanical and chemical stability to the polymer nanocomposite matrix. The porous nanostructure of AuNP-PPy-PPa/RGO provided a huge accessible area to disperse AuNP, and it avoided metallic agglomeration within the polymer matrix. The AuNP-PPy-PPa/RGO was characterized by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), contact angle measurements, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and electrochemical techniques. The pendant carboxyl group of AuNP-PPy-PPa/RGO was covalently bonded with myoglobin protein antibody, Ab-Mb, for the construction of a bioelectrode. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy technique was used for the characterization of the bioelectrode and as an impedimetric biosensor for the detection of human cardiac biomarker, Ag-cMb. The bioelectrode exhibited a linear impedimetric response to Ag-cMb in the range of 10 ng mL(-1) to 1 μg mL(-1), in phosphate-buffered solution (PBS) (pH 7.4, 0.1 M KCl) with a sensitivity of 92.13 Ω cm(2) per decade.