Electrochemical Sensing of Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide (NADH)

Electrochemical detection of NADH exploits its reversible redox chemistry, enabling quantification of cellular metabolism, enzyme activity and fermentation processes. NADH oxidation at an electrode surface produces an electrochemical signal proportional to its concentration, but direct sensing is challenged by high overpotentials and electrode fouling. Advances in nanostructured materials, redox mediators and self-assembled monolayers have lowered oxidation potentials, enhanced electron transfer rates and improved analytical stability. Screen-printed and flexible electrodes modified with conducting polymers, carbon nanomaterials or quinone-based catalysts have achieved low micromolar limits of detection and broad dynamic ranges. Integration of enzymatic layers further amplifies selectivity for dehydrogenase-linked assays. These developments have opened applications in point-of-care diagnostics, real-time monitoring of fermentation, wearable sensors and whole-blood analysis, highlighting the global significance of precise and robust NADH sensing.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated disposable electrocatalytic sensors capable of measuring NADH directly in whole blood. Screen-printed electrodes were functionalised via a self-assembled monolayer of an aminothiophenol-derived quinone diamine, creating a redox-active interface that catalyses NADH oxidation at low overpotential. The resulting sensors exhibited a detection limit of 3.5 µM and sensitivity of 0.0076 µM/µA, while maintaining stability in a mouse model over 45 days. Application to inflammatory and fibrotic disease monitoring in vivo has underscored their potential for longitudinal biomedical studies and decentralised diagnostics.

Electrochemical Sensing of Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide (NADH) publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in electrochemical sensing of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (nadh) across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH): A coenzyme involved in redox reactions, whose reduced form is oxidised at electrodes to generate an analytical signal.

Electrocatalysis: Enhancement of an electrochemical reaction rate at an electrode through a catalytic surface modifier.

Self-assembled monolayer (SAM): A single-molecule-thick layer organised on an electrode surface to introduce specific redox or binding functions.

Screen-printed electrode: A compact, disposable electrode fabricated by printing conductive inks onto a substrate for mass-produced sensors.

Amperometry: An electrochemical technique measuring current at a fixed potential, used to quantify analyte concentration over time.

References

1. Graphene‐Paper‐Based Electrodes on Plastic and Textile Supports as New Platforms for Amperometric Biosensing. Advanced Functional Materials (2021).
2. Development of an Electrochemical Sensor for NADH Determination Based on a Caffeic Acid Redox Mediator Supported on Carbon Black. Chemosensors (2015).
3. NADH Oxidation onto Different Carbon‐Based Sensors: Effect of Structure and Surface‐Oxygenated Groups. Journal of Sensors (2018).
4. Disposable electrocatalytic sensor for whole blood NADH monitoring. Scientific Reports (2022).