Nanoparticle-based biosensors and bioassays - Electrochemical Sensors, Biosensors and Their Biomedical Applications - page 440

CHAPTER 14
Nanoparticle-based biosensors and
bioassays
Guodong Liu, Jun Wang, Yuehe Lin, and Joseph Wang
14.1 Introduction
14.2 Why nanoparticles?
14.3 Nanoparticle-based optical biosensors and bioassay
14.4 Nanoparticle-based electrochemical biosensors and bioassay
14.4.1 Nanoparticle-based electrochemical DNA biosensors and bioassays
14.4.2 Nanoparticle-based electrochemical immunosensors and immunoassays
14.5 Conclusion and outlook
14.6 Acknowledgments
14.7 References
14.1 INTRODUCTION
The emergence of nanotechnology is opening new horizons for the application of nan-
oparticles in biosensors and bioassays. In particular, nanoparticles are of considerable
interest in the world of nanoscience due to their unique physical and chemical prop-
erties. Such properties offer excellent prospects for chemical and biological sensing
[1-3]. Nanoparticles with different compositions and dimensions have been widely used
in recent years as versatile and sensitive tracers for the electronic, optical, and micro-
gravimetric transduction of different biomolecular recognition events [4-8]. Colloidal
gold and semiconductor quantum dot nanoparticles are particularly attractive for
numerous bioanalytical applications. The power and scope of such nanoparticles can be
greatly enhanced by coupling them with biological recognition reactions and electrical
processes (i.e. nanobioelectronics). The enormous signal enhancement associated with
the use of nanoparticle amplifying labels and with the formation of nanoparticle-
biomolecule assemblies provides the basis for ultrasensitive optical and electrical