Ternary Monolayer Interfaces for Ultrasensitive and Direct Bioelectronic Detection of Nucleic Acids in Complex Matrices

Electrochemical nucleic acid biosensors have received considerable attention for the detection of biological agents. Control of the surface chemistry and coverage of the electrode transducer are essential for enhancing the performance of electrochemical DNA biosensors, and particularly for maximizing the hybridization efficiency and minimizing of nonspecific adsorption events. This review highlights recent advances and progress in the development of new surface chemistry approaches based on novel ternary DNA self-assembled monolayer (SAM)-interfaces using dithiols as new co-adsorbents/backfillers. The design and characterization of these powerful ternary SAM interfaces on different gold transducers are described, along with their implications to electrochemical biosensing of bioagents.