Nanopore extended field-effect transistor for selective single-molecule biosensing

Ren, Ren and Zhang, Yanjun and Paulose Nadappuram, Binoy and Akpinar, Bernice and Klenerman, David and Ivanov, Aleksandar P. and Edel, Joshua B. and Korchev, Yuri (2017) Nanopore extended field-effect transistor for selective single-molecule biosensing. Nature Communications, 8. 586. ISSN 2041-1723 (https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-017-00549-w)

[thumbnail of Ren- etal-NC-2017-Nanopore-extended-field-effect-transistor-for-selective-single-molecule-biosensing]
Preview
Text. Filename: Ren_etal_NC_2017_Nanopore_extended_field_effect_transistor_for_selective_single_molecule_biosensing.pdf
Final Published Version
License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 logo

Download (3MB)| Preview

Abstract

There has been a significant drive to deliver nanotechnological solutions to biosensing, yet there remains an unmet need in the development of biosensors that are affordable, integrated, fast, capable of multiplexed detection, and offer high selectivity for trace analyte detection in biological fluids. Herein, some of these challenges are addressed by designing a new class of nanoscale sensors dubbed nanopore extended field-effect transistor (nexFET) that combine the advantages of nanopore single-molecule sensing, field-effect transistors, and recognition chemistry. We report on a polypyrrole functionalized nexFET, with controllable gate voltage that can be used to switch on/off, and slow down single-molecule DNA transport through a nanopore. This strategy enables higher molecular throughput, enhanced signal-to-noise, and even heightened selectivity via functionalization with an embedded receptor. This is shown for selective sensing of an anti-insulin antibody in the presence of its IgG isotype.