Aptamer based fluorometric determination of ATP by exploiting the FRET between carbon dots and graphene oxide

The authors describe a fluorometric aptamer based assay for adenosine triphosphate (ATP). It is based on the use of carbon dots (CDs) and graphene oxide (GO). The resultant CD-aptamer is adsorbed on the surface of GO via π-stacking and hydrophobic interaction, and the fluorescence of CD-aptamer is quenched via fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between CDs and GO. If ATP is present, it will bind to the aptamer and the CD-aptamer will be desorbed from GO. This will suppress FRET and the fluorescence of the CDs is restored. Under the optimal conditions and at typical excitation/emission wavelengths of 358/455 nm, the assay has a 80 pM detection limit and a linear range that extends from 0.10 to 5.0 nM concentrations of ATP. The method was successfully applied to the determination of ATP in yogurt samples. This method can also be conceivably applied to the detection of other analytes for which appropriate aptamers are available.

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Graphical abstract Schematic of a novel fluorometric ATP assay based on the fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between aptamer modified carbon dots (CD-aptamer) and graphene oxide (GO). CD-aptamer was used as the energy donor and molecular recognition probe, and GO acted as energy acceptor. This assay exhibits high sensitivity and selectivity with a detection limit as low as 80 pM.

     

Interaction of peptides with graphene oxide and its application for real-time monitoring of protease activity

We have developed a novel graphene-based biosensing platform using peptides as probe biomolecules, and demonstrated its feasibility in the application of real-time monitoring of protease activity based on FRET between GO and dye-labeled peptides. This assay allows the rapid and accurate determination of enzyme kinetic parameters as well as inhibition constants.     

基于石墨烯和量子点自组装膜的能量转移构筑的高灵敏度DNA界面荧光传感

以QDs作为荧光探针, HIV1病毒序列DNA为研究对象, 设计了Quartz/PDDA/PSS/PDDA/CdTe/ssDNA自组装膜, 利用氧化石墨烯(GO)猝灭自组装膜上CdTe QDs的荧光, 而靶DNA(tDNA)与自组装膜表面ssDNA的互补配对作用使GO与CdTe QDs的距离增加, 导致自组装膜上量子点的荧光恢复, 由此建立了一种基于GO与QDs自组装膜之间荧光共振能量转移的快速灵敏检测DNA的界面分析方法, 检出限为7.26×10^-14 mol/L. 本方法制备的DNA探针操作简单, 自组装膜表面修饰的ssDNA提高了方法的选择性, GO的猝灭作用降低了检测背景, 极大地提高了荧光分析方法的灵敏度.     

Graphene oxide nanocolloids

Graphene oxide (GO) nanocolloids-sheets with lateral dimension smaller than 100 nm-were synthesized by chemical exfoliation of graphite nanofibers, in which the graphene planes are coin-stacked along the length of the nanofibers. Since the upper size limit is predetermined by the diameter of the nanofiber precursor, the size distribution of the GO nanosheets is much more uniform than that of common GO synthesized from graphite powders. The size can be further tuned by the oxidation time. Compared to the micrometer-sized, regular GO sheets, nano GO has very similar spectroscopic characteristics and chemical properties but very different solution properties, such as surface activity and colloidal stability. Due to higher charge density originating from their higher edge-to-area ratios, aqueous GO nanocolloids are significantly more stable. Dispersions of GO nanocolloids can sustain high-speed centrifugation and remain stable even after chemical reduction, which would result in aggregates for regular GO. Therefore, nano GO can act as a better dispersing agent for insoluble materials (e.g., carbon nanotubes) in water, creating a more stable colloidal dispersion.     

Pristine graphite oxide

Graphite oxide (GO) is a lamellar substance with an ambiguous structure due to material complexity. Recently published GO-related studies employ only one out of several existing models to interpret the experimental data. Because the models are different, this leads to confusion in understanding the nature of the observed phenomena. Lessening the structural ambiguity would lead to further developments in functionalization and use of GO. Here, we show that the structure and properties of GO depend significantly on the quenching and purification procedures, rather than, as is commonly thought, on the type of graphite used or oxidation protocol. We introduce a new purification protocol that produces a product that we refer to as pristine GO (pGO) in contrast to the commonly known material that we will refer to as conventional GO (cGO). We explain the differences between pGO and cGO by transformations caused by reaction with water. We produce ultraviolet-visible spectroscopic, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic, solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic, thermogravimetric, and scanning electron microscopic analytical evidence for the structure of pGO. This work provides a new explanation for the acidity of GO solutions and allows us to add critical details to existing GO models.     

A new solid-phase nanoparticle FRET assays based on GO/CS/ZnS nanocomposite film and developed in sensing for bromonium ion

Composite thin films consisting of nano-sized ZnS particles dispersed in chitosan/GO films have been prepared by in-situ method. The films obtained were characterized by FTIR and UV–Vis spectroscopy. The ZnS nanoparticles with 90 nm in diameter were dispersed uniformly in the film matrix. Optical absorption peak due to the size of ZnS particles was observed around 350 nm. The fluorescence emission at 430 nm of the GO/CS/ZnS nanocomposite films is very sensitive to the presence of bromonium ion from aqueous solutions. New solid-phase nanoparticles FRET assays are firstly immobilized on the substrate and then interacted with functionalized acceptor molecules in the solution to trigger the FRET effect to detect Br^–.     

PS colloidal particles stabilized by graphene oxide

Exfoliated graphene oxide (GO) sheets with hydrophilic functional groups on the surface were prepared by the oxidation of graphite. Because of the hydrophilic groups on the sheets and the hydrophobic carbon surface, GO sheets were located at the oil-water interface and could be used as a stabilizer in Pickering emulsions. After the Pickering emulsion polymerization of styrene, PS colloidal particles with GO sheets on the surface were prepared. The size of the GO sheets exerts an important influence on the preparation of PS colloidal particles. Small GO sheets located at the liquid-liquid interface and GO-stabilized PS colloidal particles were prepared; however, for large GO sheets, smaller PS colloidal particles prepared on the GO surface were observed. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize the structure and morphology of the colloidal particles. TEM, SEM, and XPS results all suggest the successful preparation of GO-stabilized PS colloidal particles.     

Supramolecular ionic liquid based on graphene oxide

For the purpose of preparing liquefied graphene oxide (GO), a process consisting of sulfonation with sodium sulfanilic acid and ionization with bulky amine-terminated Jeffamine? was designed and performed. The obtained hybrid fluid is actually a supramolecular ionic liquid (SIL) with sulfonated GO as the central anions and the terminal ammonium groups of Jeffamine? as the surrounding cations. The successful grafting of the GO sheets with Jeffamine?via an ionic structure was verified and the morphology of the SIL was characterized. The SIL based on GO (GO-SIL) exhibits excellent solubility and amphiphilicity. The rheological measurements confirm the essential viscoelasticity and the liquid-like behavior of GO-SIL. The present GO based SIL suggests promising applications in the fabrication of various GO or graphene based composite materials. In addition, the new functionalization method may guide the future work on acquiring derivatives with tunable properties by simply changing the bulky canopy.     

Graphene oxide hydrogel at solid/liquid interface

A strong solid/liquid interfacial interaction is found between porous alumina and graphene oxide (GO) aqueous dispersion, which promotes a fast enrichment of GO on the alumina surface and results in the formation of a GO hydrogel.     

整体式三氧化钨/氧化石墨烯气凝胶增强可见光光催化氧化NO性能（英文）

近年来,光催化技术在去除以NO为代表的诸多室内气体污染物方面展现出巨大的潜力.单质铋和铋系氧化物,非金属氧化物以及钙钛矿等众多半导体光催化材料均具有优异的NO降解效率,但很难控制氧化产物.因而会生成大量毒性更强的中间产物NO2造成二次污染.因此,寻求一种清洁、高效,且具有良好选择性的光催化材料成为了亟待解决的问题.六方相三氧化钨(h-WO_3)的价带位置较正,氧化电位较高,具有很强的氧化能力,是一种良好的氧化性光催化半导体材料.然而,WO_3催化材料多为粉末状,不仅容易团聚,难以回收利用并且会堵塞检测气路.同时,WO_3本身存在的电子-空穴复合率高,弱的可见光响应性等问题使其光催化活性较低.因而,制备具有良好可见光响应,高电子-空穴分离效率的一体化WO_3材料是其广泛应用前急需解决的问题.而石墨烯气凝胶是理想的催化剂载体,其较高的比表面积以及多孔状结构可有效地增加催化剂的暴露面积,提升催化剂利用率;更重要的是,氧化石墨烯(GO)具有极高的导电率,可作为电子受体加速电子-空穴对的分离而提升光催化活性.因此,以GO作为基体材料,构建WO_3/GO气凝胶一体化材料有良好的应用前景.然而,现在还鲜见有关宏观WO_3/GO气凝胶光催化降解NO的报道.本文以偏钨酸铵为钨源,利用体积分数为25%的冰醋酸在180ⅹC条件下制备六方相三氧化钨.通过机械搅拌以及冷冻干燥法制备WO_3/GO气凝胶.经光催化氧化NO测试发现其可见光下降解率可达51%,是WO_3粉体的3.3倍,并且NO_2生成率仅为0.5%,远远低于其他相关光催化材料.采用了X射线衍射(XRD),透射电镜(TEM),X射线光电子能谱(XPS),紫外-漫反射分光光度计(UV-DRS),傅里叶红外光谱(FTIR)和荧光光谱(PL)等手段研究了其光催化性能提高的原因.XRD测试显示,复合材料主体为h-WO_3,说明GO的引入并未破坏材料晶体结构;TEM和BET测试发现,在加入GO之后h-WO_3分散性变好,比表面积变大,从而可暴露更多的光催化活性位点.UV-DRS吸收光谱可以看到WO_3/GO气凝胶材料的吸收边发生了显著的红移,其禁带宽度从3.44 eV减小到3.16 eV,这可能是GO影响了WO_3的能带结构所致.同时PL结果表明,引入了GO之后,气凝胶材料的非辐射跃迁程度明显减小表明其电子-空穴对的复合得到了显著抑制,电子迁移显著加强.综合以上结果,可以得到WO_3/GO光催化性能提升以及良好的产物选择性的原因.首先,三维气凝胶材料的结构提升了催化剂的有效利用率,较大的比表面积暴露了更多的活性位点.其次,GO的引入减小了复合材料的禁带宽度,并使其吸光性能有所改善,产生了更多的光生电子和空穴.最后,GO本身极高的导电性,使光生电子-空穴对得以有效的分离,一方面,电子通过GO迅速转移到材料表面来参与光催化反应;另一方面,电子的快速转移抑制了电子-空穴对的复合,进而提高光催化性能,而且较正的价带位置保证了NO较为彻底的氧化为NO3–.因此,相比传统粉末WO_3催化材料,一体化的WO_3/GO气凝胶不仅显著提升了NO降解率,同时严格抑制了毒副产物NO2的生成,同时更具有容易回收利用,不存在二次污染的优点.综上所述,WO_3/GO一体化气凝胶光催化材料有望在环境净化与能源领域表现出良好的应用前景.     

Controlling wrinkles and assembly patterns in dried graphene oxide films using lyotropic graphene oxide liquid crystals

We fabricated graphene oxide (GO) films on glass substrates by blade coating a lyotropic GO liquid crystal dispersion. Substrate temperature and blading speed were precisely controlled to manipulate the surface morphologies of GO films. The temperature and blade speed influenced the drying rate of film and the amount GO dispersion supplied. By controlling these parameters, film-thickness modulation and three types of surface wrinkle patterns were selectively achieved. We also plotted the wrinkle patterns diagram as functions of the film fabrication conditions. The films exhibited different optical anisotropies depending on wrinkle patterns. GO films with controlled wrinkles can be used as electrodes for supercapacitor applications owing to the large surface areas.     

Thermally modulated multilayered graphene oxide for hydrogen storage

We have obtained high pressure H(2) isotherms with respect to the interlayer distance of multilayered graphene oxide (GO) modulated by thermal annealing. The maximum storage capacity is 4.8 (0.5) wt% at 77 K (298 K) and at 9.0 MPa pressure. We found the optimum GO interlayer distance for maximum H(2) uptake at 6.5 ?, similar to the predicted distances from first-principles calculations for graphite materials. Our results reveal that multilayered GO can be a practical material of choice to allow the use of graphene as a hydrogen storage material, provided that only small amounts of O and OH functional groups exist as spacers on GO sheets.     

Graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide as novel stationary phases via electrostatic assembly for open‐tubular capillary electrochromatography

We present here the application of graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (GOOH) sheet as novel stationary phases for open‐tubular CEC (OTCEC) separation based on electrostatic assembly. The inner walls of a bare capillary column was first modified by ionic assembly of poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDDA), and then negatively charged GO or GOOH was easily assembled on a positively charged interior walls of the capillary by electrostatic force. Scanning Electron Microscope images showed that GO and GOOH can still maintain sheet‐layer‐like structure when coated onto the capillary via electrostatic assembly. The chromatographic properties of the GO and GOOH coated columns were evaluated via OTCEC separations of various kinds of analytes, including three acid nitrophenol isomers, three basic nitroaniline isomers, and four neutral PAHs. Efficient separations of all the analytes were achieved with optimized buffer pH and organic additive. The reproducibility and stability of the GO or GOOH coated columns were investigated. Our results indicate the capability of application GO or GOOH sheet in OTCEC separation, which can be coated on the inner wall of fused‐silica capillary via electrostatic assembly.     

Lateral dimension-dependent antibacterial activity of graphene oxide sheets

Graphene oxide (GO) is a promising precursor to produce graphene-family nanomaterials for various applications. Their potential health and environmental impacts need a good understanding of their cellular interactions. Many factors may influence their biological interactions with cells, and the lateral dimension of GO sheets is one of the most relevant material properties. In this study, a model bacterium, Escherichia coli ( E. coli ), was used to evaluate the antibacterial activity of well-dispersed GO sheets, whose lateral size differs by more than 100 times. Our results show that the antibacterial activity of GO sheets toward E. coli cells is lateral size dependent. Larger GO sheets show stronger antibacterial activity than do smaller ones, and they have different time- and concentration-dependent antibacterial activities. Large GO sheets lead to most cell loss after 1 h incubation, and their concentration strongly influences antibacterial activity at relative low concentration (<10 μg/mL). In contrast, when incubating with small GO sheets up to 4 h, the inactivation rate of E. coli cells continues increasing. The increase of small GO sheet concentration also results in persistent increases in their antibacterial activity. In this study, GO sheets with different lateral sizes are all well dispersed, and their oxidation capacity toward glutathione is similar, consistent with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy results. This suggests the lateral size-dependent antibacterial activity of GO sheets is caused by neither their aggregation states, nor oxidation capacity. Atomic force microscope analysis of GO sheets and cells shows that GO sheets interact strongly with cells. Large GO sheets more easily cover cells, and cells cannot proliferate once fully covered, resulting in the cell viability loss observed in the followed colony counting test. In contrast, small GO sheets adhere to the bacterial surfaces, which cannot effectively isolate cells from environment. This study highlights the importance of tailoring the lateral dimension of GO sheets to optimize the application potential with minimal risks for environmental health and safety.     

Single lanthanide-doped oxide nanoparticles as donors in fluorescence resonance energy transfer experiments

We used lanthanide-ion doped oxide nanoparticles, Y(0.6)Eu(0.4)VO(4), as donors in fluorescent resonance energy transfer (FRET) experiments. The choice of these nanoparticles allows us to combine the advantages of the lanthanide-ion emission, in particular the long lifetime and the large Stokes shift between absorption and emission, with the detectability of the nanoparticles at the single-particle level. Using cyanine 5 (Cy5) organic molecules as acceptors, we demonstrated FRET down to the single-nanoparticle level. We showed that, due to the long donor lifetime, unambiguous and precise FRET measurements can be performed in solution even in the presence of large free acceptor concentrations. Highly efficient energy transfer was obtained for a large number of acceptor molecules per donor nanoparticle. We determined FRET efficiencies as a function of Cy5 concentration which are in good agreement with a multiple acceptor-multiple donor calculation. On the basis of the donor emission recovery due to acceptor photobleaching, we demonstrated energy transfer from single-nanoparticle donors in fluorescence microscopy experiments.     

Interfacing colloidal graphene oxide sheets with gold nanoparticles

Aqueous solutions of graphene oxide (GO) and citrate-stabilised gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are two classic, negatively charged colloids. Using the surface plasmon resonance spectra of AuNPs as a probe, we illustrate how the two like-charged colloids interact with each other and in so doing, reveal the unique solution behaviour of GO. We demonstrate that the electrical double layer of the GO sheets in water plays a key role in controlling the interaction between GO and AuNPs, which displays a one-way gate effect. It is shown that GO can capture and disperse AuNPs in water in a controllable fashion, without the need for additional chemical linkers. This discovery allows the successful synthesis of uncapped, yet solution-dispersible metal-nanoparticle assemblies. Such metal nanostructures have long been pursued for nano-plasmonics and sensing applications, but have remained difficult to prepare using conventional polymer dispersants. This work also makes clear that the combination of the two-dimensional conformation of GO along with its large molecular size and self-contained functional groups allows it to act as a unique soluble nanocarrier/substrate (the thinnest, functionalised flat substrate possible in nature) for the synthesis of new, soluble functional materials.     

Insulin-binding aptamer-conjugated graphene oxide for insulin detection

This paper describes a simple and sensitive aptamer/graphene oxide (GO) based assay for insulin detection. GO can protect DNA from nuclease cleavage, but aptamers can be detached from the GO surface by specific target binding. This exposes the aptamers to enzymatic cleavage and releases the target for a new cycle. Cycling of targets leads to significant signal amplification and low LOD.     

A Label-free Fluorescent Aptasensor for Turn-on Monitoring Ochratoxin A Based on AIE-active Probe and Graphene Oxide

A label-free fluorescent aptasensor for specific and ultrasensitive monitoring ochratoxin A(OTA) was developed using the specific aptamer of OTA(OSA) as recognition element, an aggregation-induced emission(AIE) molecule(a 9,10-distyrylanthracene with two ammonium groups, DSAI) as a fluorescent probe, and graphene oxide(GO) as a quencher. In the absence of OTA, the AIE probe DSAI and OSA complex(DSAI/OSA) is adsorbed on the GO surface, and the fluorescence of DSAI will be quenched efficiently via the fluorescence resonance energy transfer(FRET) from DSAI to GO. Upon the OTA addition, a more stable complex(OSA-OTA) is formed and released from GO. Meanwhile, DSAI and OSA-OTA can form a new complex(DSAI/OSA-OTA), then the fluorescent signal of DSAI recovers gradually. Therefore, by introducing GO and DSAI, the fluorescence signal of DSAI can be easily turned from "off" to "on" after the addition of OTA, and the ultrasensitive detection of OTA by monitoring the change of the fluorescence signal of DSAI can be readily realized. The detection limit of the assay can reach 0.324 nmol/L with a linear detection range of 10-200 nmol/L. And the aptasensor exhibits high selectivity for OTA against other analogues. Moreover, it has been successfully applied for the detection of OTA in red wine samples.     

Efficient reduction of graphene oxide catalyzed by copper

We report that copper thin films deposited on top of graphene oxide (GO) serve as an effective catalyst to reduce GO sheets in a diluted hydrogen environment at high temperature. The reduced GO (rGO) sheets exhibit higher effective field-effect hole mobility, up to 80 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1), and lower sheet resistance (13 kΩ □(-1)) compared with those reduced by reported methods such as hydrazine and thermal annealing. Raman and XPS characterizations are addressed to study the reduction mechanism on graphene oxide underneath copper thin films. The level of reduction in rGO sheets is examined by Raman spectroscopy and it is well correlated with hole mobility values. The conductivity enhancement is attributed to the growth of the graphitic domain size. This method is not only suitable for reduction of single GO sheets but also applicable to lower the sheet resistance of Langmuir-Blodgett assembled GO films.     

High-performance graphene oxide electromechanical actuators

Having demonstrated unparalleled actuation stresses and strains, covalently bonded carbon-based nanomaterials are emerging as the actuators of the future. To exploit their full potential, further investigations into the optimum configurations of these new materials are essential. Using first-principle density functional calculations, we examine so-called clamped and unzipped graphene oxide (GO) as potential electromechanical actuator materials. Very high strains are predicted for hole injection into GO, with reversible and irreversible values of up to 6.3% and 28.2%, respectively. The huge 28% irreversible strain is shown to be the result of a change in the atomic structure of GO from a metastable clamped to more stable unzipped configuration. Significantly, this strain generation mechanism makes it possible to hold a constant strain of 23.8% upon removal of the input power, making this material ideal for long-term, low-power switching applications. A unique contraction of unzipped GO upon electron injection is also observed. It is shown that the origin of this unique behavior is the modulation of the structural rippling effect, which is a characteristic feature of GO. With reversible strains and stresses in excess of 5% and 100 GPa, respectively, GO is poised to be an extremely useful material for micro/nanoelectromechanical system actuators.