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Integrated Carbon Nanostructures for Detection of Neurotransmitters

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Abstract

Carbon-based materials, such as diamond-like carbon (DLC), carbon nanofibers (CNFs), and carbon nanotubes (CNTs), are inherently interesting for neurotransmitter detection due to their good biocompatibility, low cost and relatively simple synthesis. In this paper, we report on new carbon-hybrid materials, where either CNTs or CNFs are directly grown on top of tetrahedral amorphous carbon (ta-C). We show that these hybrid materials have electrochemical properties that not only combine the best characteristics of the individual “building blocks” but their synergy makes the electrode performance superior compared to conventional carbon based electrodes. By combining ta-C with CNTs, we were able to realize electrode materials that show wide and stable water window, almost reversible electron transfer properties and high sensitivity and selectivity for detecting dopamine in the presence of ascorbic acid. Furthermore, the sensitivity of ta-C + CNF hybrids towards dopamine as well as glutamate has been found excellent paving the road for actual in vivo measurements. The wide and stable water window of these sensors enables detection of other neurotransmitters besides DA as well as capability of withstanding higher potentials without suffering from oxygen and hydrogen evolution.

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Acknowledgments

Dr. Emilia Kaivosoja (Aalto University, Espoo, Finland) and Olli Pitkänen (University of Oulu, Finalnd) are acknowledged for their assistance with carbon nanotube growth and glutamate measurements, respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electrical Engineering and Automation, School of Electrical Engineering, Aalto University, 02150, Espoo, Finland

    Sami Sainio, Tommi Palomäki, Noora Tujunen & Tomi Laurila

  2. Department of Materials Science, School of Chemical Technology, Aalto University, 02150, Espoo, Finland

    Vera Protopopova & Jari Koskinen

  3. Center for Nanotechnology, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, 94035, USA

    Sami Sainio, Jessica Koehne & M. Meyyappan

  4. Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Oulu, P.O. Box. 4500, 90570, Oulu, Finland

    Krisztian Kordas

Authors
  1. Sami Sainio
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  2. Tommi Palomäki
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  3. Noora Tujunen
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  4. Vera Protopopova
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  5. Jessica Koehne
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  6. Krisztian Kordas
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  7. Jari Koskinen
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  8. M. Meyyappan
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  9. Tomi Laurila
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Correspondence to Sami Sainio.

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Sainio, S., Palomäki, T., Tujunen, N. et al. Integrated Carbon Nanostructures for Detection of Neurotransmitters. Mol Neurobiol 52, 859–866 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12035-015-9233-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12035-015-9233-z

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