Detection of heart-fatty acid binding protein in human serum using gold nano/micro-islands and molecularly imprinted polymers

Here, we have developed a biomimetic sensor using gold nano/micro-islands (NMIs) and molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for electrochemical detection of H-FABP. The fabricated nanostructured electrode was characterized and its analytical performance was evaluated in human serum spiked with H-FABP in the clinical range (10 pg mL−1 to 100 ng mL−1). In this regard, an excellent linear performance (R2=0.99) and a low limit of detection (LOD) of 4.86 pg mL−1 were observed. Moreover, the selectivity performance of the proposed biosensor was investigated in the presence of troponin T (TnT), and myoglobin (Myo). The differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) results showed that the MIP current has altered approximately 16, 20, and 62% for TnT, Myo, and H-FABP, respectively, confirming the low interference of other cardiac biomarkers on the sensing performance. Ultimately, the developed biomimetic sensor fabricated by the integration of hierarchical structures of gold and MIP opens up future perspectives for sensitive, low-cost, and early detection of myocardial infarction in human serum.