Layer-by-layer hydroxymethyl ferrocene modified sensor for one-step flow/stop-flow injection amperometric immunoassay of α-fetoprotein

A rapid one-step flow/stop-flow injection amperometric immunoassay for α-fetoprotein (AFP) using a novel home-produced electrochemical sensor was proposed. The sensor was prepared using layer-by-layer adsorption of positively charged poly(allylamine) (PAA) and negatively charged hydroxymethyl ferrocene on a screen-printed electrode (SPE). The electrochemistry of the immobilized ferrocene moieties showed a surface-controlled electrode process. Based on an electrochemical enzyme-linked immunoassay with the immobilized ferrocene moieties as an electron transfer mediator between the electrode and the horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-labeled anti-AFP antibody, a calibration curve with two linear ranges from 5 to 20 and 20 to 150 ng ml−1 and a detection limit of 2 ng ml−1 for AFP determination was obtained under the optimized conditions of 0.891 ml min−1 flow rate, 20 μl injection volume and +25 mV applied potential. The sensor showed good repeatability and reproducibility and retained more than 95% of its original signal after 15 days of storage. The proposed method eliminated the need for washing and addition of any substrate or mediator. The complete assay could be handled in less than 25 min with a one-step injection of a 40 μl sample solution. The proposed method would be valuable for the diagnosis and monitoring of carcinoma and its metastasis.