Propofol is widely recognized as the preferred intravenous anaesthetic for short-term sedation due to its rapid onset and elimination, gentle recovery from anaesthesia, and minimal side effects.1 Improper administration, either excessive or insufficient, may result in propofol infusion syndrome (PRIS) or intraoperative awareness, leading to physiological and psychological harm to patients. Notably, there is considerable variability in individual responses to propofol anaesthesia. Additionally, there is a growing global concern about addiction and fatalities associated with propofol abuse in recent years. Therefore, the assessment of plasma propofol levels is crucial in drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics (DMPK) as well as forensic toxicology research.2,3 In this work, an innovative smartphone-based enzymatic amperometric biosensor was developed by using horseradish peroxidase (HRP) immobilized onto carbon based screen-printed electrodes. In particular, HRP was operated in mediated electron transfer (MET) using [Os(4,4′-dimethyl-2,2′-bipyridine)2(poly-vinylimidazole)10Cl]2+/+ as immobilized mediator, monitoring the inhibition of H2O2 catalytic activity of HRP induced by propofol.4 The modified electrodes were characterized by using cyclic voltammetry and amperometry to extract the biosensor analytical figures of merit (e.g., dynamic linear range, limit of detection (LOD), sensitivity and stability). The electrodes were finally tested in blood samples using a smartphone-integrated system in order to develop a blood-prick propofol screening test.
References
1McKeage, K., & Perry, C. M. (2003). Propofol: a review of its use in intensive care sedation of adults. CNS drugs, 17, 235-272.
2George, A. A., Hargrove, V. M., & Molina, D. K. (2016). Postmortem propofol levels: a case of residual detection long after administration. The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, 37(1), 4-6.
3Sahinovic, M. M., Struys, M. M., & Absalom, A. R. (2018). Clinical pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of propofol. Clinical pharmacokinetics, 57(12), 1539-1558.
4Bollella, P., & Gorton, L. (2018). Enzyme based amperometric biosensors. Current opinion in Electrochemistry, 10, 157-173.
