Recent advances and future perspectives in electrochemical sensing of biomarkers by using MOF- based electrode materials

Abstract

Metal-organic frameworks (MOF) are an extraordinarily versatile class of porous nanostructured materials that have gained popularity in several scientific fields. Organic ligands are coupled to the inorganic metal centers or clusters to produce MOFs. This frontier review paper critically summarizes the most recent developments in MOF-based materials for electrochemical (EC) detection of key biomarkers, including glucose, dopamine, lactic acid, L-tryptophan, uric and ascorbic acids, H2O2, and nicotine. Various electrochemical techniques, such as cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry, and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) have been employed to enhance detection sensitivity and specificity. MOF-based EC sensing systems hold promise in medical diagnostics, particularly for diseases such as diabetes, neurodegenerative and cardiovascular disorders, and cancer. These sensors offer distinctive features like an extensive specific surface area, tunable pore sizes, exceptional catalytic performance, and abundant active sites, enabling sensitive, rapid, and cost-effective biomarker detection. The construction of different nanostructures, such as nanoparticles, nanorods, nanowires, and three-dimensional networks, has further improved the electro-catalytic efficiency of MOF-based materials. We also critically assess the performance of advanced MOF-derived nanostructured EC sensor platforms, and discuss future challenges and potential improvements, particularly for enzyme-free EC sensors in clinical diagnostics. This work underscores the potential of MOF-based EC sensors as versatile and effective tools for detecting a wide range of compounds and biomolecules relevant to human health.