In this study, a novel surface plasmon-coupled electrochemiluminescence
(SPC-ECL) biosensor was developed based on bismuth nano-nest and Ti3CN quantum dots (Ti3CN QDs). First, MXene derivative
QDs (Ti3CN QDs) with excellent luminescence performance
were prepared as the ECL luminescent. The N doping in Ti3CN QDs can effectively improve the luminescence performance and catalytic
activity. Therefore, the luminescence performance of QDs has been
effectively improved. Furthermore, the bismuth nano-nest structure
with a strong localized surface plasmon resonance effect has been
designed as the sensing interface via the electrochemical deposition
method. It was worth noticed that the morphology of bismuth nanomaterials
can be controlled effectively on the electrode surface by the step
potential method. Due to the abundant surface plasmon hot spots generated
between the bismuth nano-nests, the isotropic ECL signal of Ti3CN QDs can be not only significantly enhanced by 5.8 times
but also converted into polarized emission. Finally, the bismuth nano-nest/Ti3CN QD-based SPC-ECL sensor was used to quantify miRNA-421
in the range of 1 fM to 10 nM. The biosensor has been successfully
used for miRNA in ascites samples from gastric cancer patients, which
indicated that the SPC-ECL sensor developed in this study has great
potential for clinical analysis.