title: A colorimetric sensor array for detection and discrimination of biothiols based on aggregation of gold nanoparticles.
abstract: Developments of sensitive, rapid, and cheap systems for identification of a wide range of biomolecules have been recognized as a critical need in the biology field. Here, we introduce a simple colorimetric sensor array for detection of biological thiols, based on aggregation of three types of surface engineered gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The low-molecular-weight biological thiols show high affinity to the surface of AuNPs; this causes replacement of AuNPs' shells with thiol containing target molecules leading to the aggregation of the AuNPs through intermolecular electrostatic interaction or hydrogen-bonding. As a result of the predetermined aggregation, color and UV-vis spectra of AuNPs are changed. We employed the digital mapping approach to analyze the spectral variations with statistical and chemometric methods, including hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). The proposed array could successfully differentiate biological molecules (e.g., cysteine, glutathione and glutathione disulfide) from other potential interferences such as amino acids in the concentration range of 10-800 μmol L(-1).
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran 11155-9516, Iran.
authors.forename: Forough
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ghasemi
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran 11155-9516, Iran; Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address: hormozi@sharif.edu.
authors.forename: M Reza
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Hormozi-Nezhad
authors.affiliation: Department of Nanotechnology and Nanotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 13169-43551, Iran; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305-5101, United States; Cardiovascular Institute, Stanford University, School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305-5101, United States. Electronic address: mahmoudi@stanford.edu.
authors.forename: Morteza
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mahmoudi
mesh_terms: D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003124:Colorimetry / Q000295:instrumentation*; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000032:analysis*; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000737:chemistry; D013056:Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D006046:Gold
keywords: Aggregation; Biothiol; Chemometric method; Colorimetric sensor array; Gold nanoparticle