Single conical track-etched nanopore for a free-label detection of OSCS contaminants in heparin

Abstract The heparin contamination by oversulfated chondroitin (OSCS) was at the origin of one major sanitary problem of last decade. Here we propose a novel strategy to detect OSCS from heparin solution based on conical nanopore functionalized with poly-L-lysine deposition to ensure its re-usability. This sensor is an excellent to detect low heparin concentration (from 25 ng/ml to 3 μg/ml) using the modification of ionic current rectification. It also allows following the kinetic of heparin degradation by heparinase with a good correlation with results obtained by classical methods. The sensor is sensitive to the inhibition of heparinase by OSCS until a concentration of 200 pg/ml representing 0.01% in weight in a heparin. This resolution is one order of magnitude lower than the one obtained by chromatography. For the first time, it was reached without fluorescence labeling.