Novel sensor for the determination of CA 15-3 in serum of breast cancer patients based on Fe-gallic acid complex doped in modified cellulose polymer thin films.

Fe-gallic acid MOF embedded in an epoxy methyl cellulose polymer (CMC) thin film was synthesized and characterized by different micro-analytical tools such as: FE-SEM/EDX, XPS analysis, XRD analysis, FT-IR, and fluorescence spectroscopy. Fe-gallic acid MOF doped in a stable CMC polymer thin film is used as a novel sensor to identify CA 15-3 in the sera of patients suffering breast malignancy. The presence of appropriate functional groups in aqueous CA 15-3 solutions enables it to interact with the Fe-gallic acid MOF embedded in the thin film. The Fe-gallic acid MOF was found to absorb energy at 350 nm ( λ ex ) and emits radiation at 439 nm which was specifically quenched in the presence of CA 15-3 over a working concentration range of 0.05-570 U mL -1 . In contrast to other CA 15-3 detection methods which suffered from electronic noise, interference and slowness, the Fe-gallic acid MOF proved its sensitivity as an economic, stable and reliable probe for the detection and determination of CA 15-3 in patients' serum samples with a detection limit of 0.01 U mL -1 at pH 7.2.