The role of pramipexole functionalized MWCNTs to the fabrication of Pd nanoparticles modified GCE for electrochemical detection of dopamine

Background Interest in functionalized carbon nanotubes for many applications arises from a variety on the kind of modification atoms or molecules that are attached to it. Dopamine, the feel-good hormone, release by neurons and playing an important role in body systems. Abnormal dopamine levels cause nerve disorders such as Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia. Objectives The aim of this study was the design and fabrication of electrochemical sensor based on MWCNTs and Pd nanoparticles for detection and determination of dopamine in biological samples. Methods For this purpose, we report the synthesis of pramipexole-functionalized MWCNTs (pp-MWCNTs) for efficient capture of palladium nanoparticles and fabrication of Pd/pp-MWCNTs nanocomposite. Morphological and structural characteristics of the nanocomposites were characterized using various techniques including field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Results This newly synthesized nanocomposite may have numerous applications in nanotechnology and sensing. We show that the synthesized nanocomposite reported here will be applicable for modifications of bare glassy carbon electrode (Pd/pp-MWCNTs/ GCE) to sense of dopamine electrochemically. Two linear calibrations for dopamine are obtained over ranges of 0.01 to 10 mu M and 10 to 200 mu M with a detection limit of 1.4 nM. The Pd/pp-MWCNTs/GCE shows high stability and sensitivity, and an acceptable decrease of over-potential for the electrooxidation of dopamine that decreases interference in the analysis. The proposed Pd/pp-MWCNTs nanocomposite can be used as a voltammetric detector for dopamine monitoring in routine real sample analysis. Conclusions The proposed sensor showed high sensitivity and selectivity in sensing dopamine in biological samples.