Scalable Production of Highly-Sensitive Nanosensors Based on Graphene Functionalized with a Designed G Protein-Coupled Receptor

We have developed a novel, all-electronic biosensor for opioids that consists of an engineered mu opioid receptor protein, with high binding affinity for opioids, chemically bonded to a graphene field-effect transistor to read out ligand binding. A variant of the receptor protein that provided chemical recognition was computationally redesigned to enhance its solubility and stability in an aqueous environment. A shadow mask process was developed to fabricate arrays of hundreds of graphene transistors with average mobility of ~1500 cm2 V-1 s-1 and yield exceeding 98%. The biosensor exhibits high sensitivity and selectivity for the target naltrexone, an opioid receptor antagonist, with a detection limit of 10 pg/mL.