Covalent coupling of organophosphorus hydrolase loaded quantum dots to carbon nanotube/Au nanocomposite for enhanced detection of methyl parathion

An amperometric biosensor for highly selective and sensitive determination of methyl parathion (MP) was developed based on dual-signal amplification: (1) a large amount of introduced enzyme on the electrode surface and (2) synergistic effects of nanoparticles towards enzymatic catalysis. The fabrication process includes (1) electrochemical deposition of gold nanoparticles by a multi-potential step technique at multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) film pre-cast on a glassy carbon electrode and (2) immobilization of methyl parathion degrading enzyme (MPDE) onto a modified electrode through CdTe quantum dots (CdTe QDs) covalent attachment. The introduced MWCNT and gold nanoparticles significantly increased the surface area and exhibited synergistic effects towards enzymatic catalysis. CdTe QDs are further used as carriers to load a large amount of enzyme. As a result of these two important enhancement factors, the proposed biosensor exhibited extremely sensitive, perfectly selective, and rapid response to methyl parathion in the absence of a mediator. The detection limit was 1.0 ng/mL. Moreover, since MPDE hydrolyzes pesticides containing the P–S bond, it showed high selectivity for detecting MP and many interfering compounds, such as carbamate pesticides. Other organophosphorous pesticides and oxygen-containing inorganic ions (SO42−, NO3−) did not interfere with the determination. The proposed MPDE biosensor presents good reproducibility and stability, and the MPDE is not poisoned by organophosphate pesticides. Unlike cholinesterase-based biosensor, the MPDE biosensor can be potentially reused and is suitable for continuous monitoring.