Electrochemical activity of dendrimer-stabilized gold nanoparticles on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) was studied by means of cyclic voltammetry of sodium hypochlorite. Dendrimer-stabilized gold nanoparticles were deposited onto a glassy carbon surface by electrophoresis and the deposition was observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Both anodic and cathodic peak currents were found to increase after the deposition of dendrimer-stabilized gold nanoparticles. In the case of dendrimers deposited onto the GCE surface, the magnitude of the current was smaller than for dendrimer-stabilized-gold-nanoparticle-modified GCE. This indicates the enhancement in the rate of electrolysis due to gold nanoparticles. (C) 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.