An ultra-sensitive impedimetric immunosensor for detection of the serum oncomarker CA-125 in ovarian cancer patients

Abstract

Effective treatment of ovarian cancer depends upon the early detection of the malignancy. Here, we report on the development of a new nanostructured immunosensor for early detection of cancer antigen 125 (CA-125). A gold electrode was modified with mercaptopropionic acid (MPA), and then consecutively conjugated with silica coated gold nanoparticles (AuNP@SiO₂), CdSe quantum dots (QDs) and anti-CA-125 monoclonal antibody (mAb). The engineered MPA|AuNP@SiO₂|QD|mAb immunosensor was characterised using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Successive conjugation of AuNP@SiO₂, CdSe QD and anti-CA-125 mAb onto the gold electrode resulted in sensitive detection of CA-125 with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.0016 U mL⁻¹ and a linear detection range (LDR) of 0–0.1 U mL⁻¹. Based on the high sensitivity and specificity of the immunosensor, we propose this highly stable and reproducible biosensor for the early detection of CA-125.