Sensors and Actuators Reports (Jun 2025)

High-sensitivity colorimetric sensor based on oxidase-like Mn3O4 nanozyme for Cys detection

  • Junting Liang,
  • Dihan Duan,
  • Lubing Sun,
  • Jinming Li,
  • Mengke Wang,
  • Ziyi Chang,
  • Rick F. Thorne,
  • Chuanliang Chen,
  • Demin Duan

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9
p. 100296

Abstract

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Cysteine (Cys) is essential for numerous physiological processes and play a vital role in disease diagnostics, underscoring the necessity for effective and sensitive detection techniques for Cys. In this research, we introduce an ultrasensitive colorimetric approach based on oxidase-like Mn3O4 nanozymes. The nanozymes were synthesized through a straightforward wet chemical method and displayed a flower-like globular morphology, showing remarkable oxidase-like catalytic performance with a low Km value of 0.1896 mM and a high Vmax of 2.8 × 10⁻⁷ M s⁻¹. By leveraging the outstanding catalytic activities of Mn3O4 nanozymes and optimizing the TMB concentration, we developed a novel and sensitive colorimetric sensor for Cys detection. Experimental results indicated a detection range for Cys between 0.5 and 45 μM, with a lower limit of detection (LOD) of 0.02636 μM. This established method for detecting Cys reveals significant promise for the advancement of effective sensing systems.

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