Using aerosol-assisted atmospheric-pressure plasma to embed proteins onto a substrate in one step for biosensor fabrication

Abstract

This study shows that aerosol-assisted dielectric-barrier-discharge atmospheric-pressure plasma deposition (AAAPPD) is a rapid and reagent-free method to entrap proteins on different substrates for biosensor fabrication, and the proteins were not damaged. AAAPPD involves depositing plasma-polymerized ethylene (ppE) with grafted hydroxyl functional groups and embedding the protein in the ppE in one step, making the protein entrapment faster than conventional methods and without using reagents. In this study, SEM and XPS show that more protein deposited near the inlet. Electrophoresis, temperature analysis, and immunostaining respectively demonstrated that the protein maintained its integrity, was unheated, and exhibited activity during AAAPPD. The immunostaining results of AAAPPD protein was close to that of covalent-bonded protein. AAAPPD also entraps protein on three different biosensor substrates.