Investigation on the ability of heteroatom-doped graphene for biorecognitionElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c6nr09313b

Doped graphene platforms have been attracting considerable attention due to their improved electrochemical performances. Recent studies have shown the advantage of using either p-type or n-type doped graphene materials as transducers for the detection of various electroactive probes. Here we wanted to take a step forward and extend the study to investigate the ability of heteroatom doped graphene as an electrochemical platform for biorecognition. To this aim, a boron-doped graphene, a nitrogen-doped graphene and an undoped graphene material prepared under similar conditions were employed for the detection of fumonisin B 1 , a highly carcinogenic mycotoxin found in food commodities. We found that the material structural features, such as the amount of oxygen functionalities, had a stronger influence on the sensitivity of biorecognition rather than the kind and amount of dopant. Our findings may be essential for the choice of a proper platform for the assessment of food safety. In heteroatom doped graphene, the structural features such as amount of oxygen functionalities may have stronger influence on the sensitivity for biorecognition rather than the kind and amount of dopant.