Bimetallic PtFe alloyed nanoparticles decorated on 3D hollow N-doped carbon nanoflowers as efficient electrochemical biosensing interfaces for ultrasensitive detection of SCCA

Recently, cervical cancer seriously threatens women’s health and life, where squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCA) is a representative biomarker widely applied for the early diagnosis and therapy. Herein, bimetallic PtFe alloyed nanoparticles were efficiently decorated on three-dimensional hollow N-doped carbon nanoflowers (PtFe/H-NCFs) by a simple pyrolysis strategy. We strictly investigated the influences of the hollow nanoflower-like structure, N-doping and highly active PtFe nanoalloys on the detection signals from Fe(CN) 6 3– oxidation, coupled with their effects on the loading of the SCCA antibody. Consequently, a high-performance label-free PtFe/H-NCFs-based biosensor was established for ultrasensitive analysis of SCCA, with a wider linear range of 0.01 pg mL –1 -10 ng mL –1 and a lower limit of detection (0.003 pg mL –1 , S/N = 3). The developed sensor holds potential applications for monitoring biomarkers in early diagnosis and clinic therapy. • PtFe/H-NCFs with large surface area were prepared by a one-pot pyrolysis strategy. • PtFe nanoparticles were well decorated on the 3D H-NCFs, showing high electrocatalytic activity. • The prepared immunosensor showed highly improved analytical performance for detecting SCCA.