Assemblies of bi-functional peptides on pyrolytic graphite for cell adhesion

Abstract Designing cell-electrode biointerfaces is important for electrochemical monitoring of cell functions and activities in their microenvironments. Herein, peptide monolayer was constructed on the pyrolytic graphite surface by self-assembling of tritryptophane, and the bi-functionalized peptide conjugating cell adhesion peptide, GRGDS (Gly-Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser) induced adhesion of anchorage-dependent cells. The peptide modification did not alter the electrochemical properties of pyrolytic graphite, and the redox signals of potassium ferricyanide were maintained. These observations indicate that non-covalent functionalization of graphite/graphene using bi-functional peptides would be effective for electrochemical measurement of cell activities.