Nanocrystalline pure alpha-Fe2O3 and Co-doped alpha-Fe2O3 powders were synthesized by the hydrolysis method. The structure and the morphology of the samples were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The magnetic property of the samples was studied by vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) at room temperature, which showed that the Co-doped alpha-Fe2O3 a have a weaker ferromagnetic behavior than the pure alpha-Fe2O3. The electrochemical sensing ability of ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA) by pure alpha-Fe2O3 and Co-doped alpha-Fe2O3 modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) exhibited higher anodic current response with a shift in positive potential than the bare GCE. Compared with pure alpha-Fe2O3, Co-doped alpha-Fe2O3 showed enhanced electrochemical sensing performance. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.