Electrochemical Regeneration of the Cofactor NADH Employing a Carbon Nanofibers Cathode

A cathode made of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) grown on a stainless steel mesh was used for the reduction of an oxidized form of the enzymatic cofactor nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD(+)) to enzymatically-active 1,4-NADH, i.e. for the electrochemical regeneration of 1,4-NADH. The CNF cathode was shown to enable fast electrochemical NAD(+) reduction kinetics and high NAD(+) conversion relative to the glassy carbon and stainless steel mesh cathodes alone. The CNF cathode was also found to be highly selective, yielding a 99.3 +/- 0.6% pure 1,4-NADH product. As such, the CNF cathode is a good candidate for the electrochemical regeneration of 1,4-NADH in biochemical reactors and biosensors.