Biosensor system for continuous flow determination of enzyme activities. I. Determination of glucose oxidase and lactic dehydrogenase activities

A biosensor system for continuous flow determination of enzyme activity was developed and applied to the determination of glucose oxidase and lactic dehydrogenase activities. The glucose oxidase activity sensor was prepared from the combination of an oxygen electrode and a flow cell. Similarly, the lactic dehydrogenase activity sensor was prepared from the combination of a pyruvate oxidase membrane, an oxygen electrode, and a flow cell. Pyruvate oxidase was covalently immobilized on a membrane prepared from cellulose triacetate, 1,8-diamino-4-aminomethyloctane, and glutaraldehyde. Glucose oxidase activity was determined from the oxygen consumed upon oxidation of glucose catalyzed by glucose oxidase. Lactic dehydrogenase activity was determined from the pyruvic acid formed upon dehydrogenation of lactic acid catalyzed by lactic dehydrogenase. The amount of pyruvic acid was determined from the oxygen consumed upon oxidation of pyruvic acid by pyruvate oxidase. Calibration curves for activity of glucose oxidase and lactic dehydrogenase were linear up to 81 and 300 units, respectively. One assay could be completed within 15 min for both sensors and these were stable for more than 25 days at 5°C. The relative errors were ±4 and ±6% for glucose oxidase and lactic dehydrogenase sensors, respectively. These results suggest that the sensor system proposed is a simple, rapid, and economical method for the determination of enzyme activities.     

A colorimetric sensor array based on natural pigments for the discrimination of saccharides

A colorimetric sensor array based on natural pigments was developed to discriminate between various saccharides. Anthocyanins, pH‐sensitive natural pigments, were extracted from fruits and flowers and used as components of the sensor array. Variation in pH, due to the reaction between saccharides and boronic acids, caused obvious colour changes in the natural pigments. Only by observing the difference map with the naked eye could 11 common saccharides be divided into independent individuals. In conjunction with pattern recognition, the sensor array clearly differentiated between sugar and sugar alcohol with highly accuracy and allowed rapid quantification of different concentrations of maltitol and fructose. This sensor array for saccharides is expected to become a promising alternative tool for food monitoring. The link between anthocyanin and saccharide detection opened a new guiding direction for the application of anthocyanins in foods.     

A chemiluminescence sensor array based on nanomaterials for discrimination of teas

In recent years, electronic tongue and nose devices have been developed that consist of an array of cross‐responsive sensors. In this study, we report a chemiluminescence (CL) sensor array based on oxidation at twelve different catalytic nanomaterial locations for the discrimination of eight teas. CL response patterns or “fingerprints” were obtained for a given compound on the sensor array and then discriminated through linear discriminant analysis. The experiments demonstrate that the sensor array had excellent differentiability and reversibility. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of micromolar concentrations of glucose by an interference free flow injection based biosensor

A fast, sensitive, interference-free, single enzyme single reagent glucose biosensor, operated in flow injection analysis (FIA) mode, was developed. The method used involved formation of colored complex of titanium sulfate reagent with the peroxide generated by glucose oxidase immobilized in a packed bed reactor. The color developed was detected spectrophotometrically in a flow cuvette. The system could measure down to 0.5 mg glucose l^–1 and the response was reproducible and linear in the range 1 mg l^–1 to 100 mg l^–1. The analysis time for a 500 l sample was 35 s and was free of interference from a number of substances tested. Analysis results using an off-line batch kit were observed to be in agreement with the developed system for determination of glucose in blood plasma samples.     

一株产葡萄糖氧化酶菌株的筛选、鉴定及酶学性质表征

[背景]海洋中蕴藏着大量未被开发利用的微生物种质资源,而且海洋微生物产的酶类因其具有耐低温、耐高压和耐高盐等明显区别于陆地微生物所产酶类的特点而备受关注.[目的]从渤海海域海泥样品中分离筛选产葡萄糖氧化酶的菌株,并研究其酶学性质.[方法]通过平板初筛和酶活复筛,确定产葡萄糖氧化酶的菌株;通过形态学鉴定和构建系统发育树分...     

Enzyme-entrapping membranes for biosensors obtained by radiation-induced polymerization

A new method of physically immobilizing enzymes in poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) membranes was developed in order to obtain suitable biosensors. It was possible to prepare an enzyme sensor based on an oxygen Clark electrode and on glucose oxidase immobilized by low-temperature gamma radiation-induced polymerization. Temperature and pH effects on the activity of immobilized enzyme are described and the response characteristics of the resulting biosensor are summarized. The determination of glucose in standard solutions was carried out and a linear calibration curve, with an R² value of 0·9993, from the detection limit 5 × 10⁻⁵ to 1·2 × 10⁻³ was obtained. The biosensor was employed to analysis of control sera and the results were compared to those obtained by enzymatic-spectrophotometric detection.     

Sensitive chemical sensor array based on nanozymes for discrimination of metal ions and teas

Tea, originating from China, is an important part of Chinese traditional culture. There are different qualities of and producing areas for tea on the market, therefore it is necessary to discriminate between teas in a fast and accurate way. In this study, a chemical sensor array based on nanozymes was developed to discriminate between different metal ions and teas. The indicators for the sensor array are three kinds of nanozymes mimicking laccase (Cu‐ATP, Cu‐ADP, Cu‐AMP). The as‐developed sensor array successfully discriminated 12 metal ions and the detection limit was as low as 0.01 μM. The as‐developed sensor array was also able to discriminate tea samples. Different kinds of tea samples appeared in different areas in the canonical score plot with different response patterns. Furthermore, in a blind experiment, we successfully discriminated 12 samples with a 100% accuracy. This sensor array integrates chemistry and food science together, realizing the simultaneous detection of several kinds of teas using a sensitive method. The as‐developed sensor array would have an application in the tea market and provide a fast and easy method to discriminate between teas.     

The function of a hydrogen peroxide-detecting electroenzymatic glucose electrode is markedly impaired in human sub-cutaneous tissue and plasma

Electroenzymatic glucose sensors implanted into sub-cutaneous (s.c.) tissue of human subjects and experimental animals exhibit lower sensitivities to glucose than in buffer solutions before implantation. The mechanism of the decrease of sensitivity is not known. Sensors used in this study were fabricated from platinum wires (diameter 0.125 mm) with covalently bound glucose oxidase at the tip of the wire. After coating the tip with polyurethane, wires were placed into 27 gauge steel needles. Sensors were operated potentiostatically at 700 mV against Ag/AgCl pseudo-reference electrodes. These sensors were implanted s.c. in 6 diabetic patients for 7 h. In 4 patients, sensors were responsive to successive increases of plasma glucose levels. Mean sensitivity to glucose in s.c. tissue was 29% of in vitro sensitivity. In 2 patients there was a sudden decrease of sensor currents, unrelated to glucose, shortly after implantation. Sensors were inhibited in human plasma to a similar extent. When sensors were exposed to native plasma and to plasma ultrafiltrate (mol. wt. <10 kDa) for 10 h, identical decreases of signals were found. Exposure to dialysed plasma (mol. wt. >12 kDa) caused much less decrease of sensor signals. Losses of sensor sensitivities to glucose in s.c. tissue and in plasma were totally reversible upon re-exposure of sensors to buffer solutions. We conclude that sensor inactivation in plasma and possibly in s.c. tissue is caused by low molecular weight substances not retained by the polyurethane membrane.     

Glucose oxidase immobilized electrode for potentiometric estimation of glucose

Glucose oxidase has been immobilized onto a thin platinum strip, by co-crosslinking with bovine serum albumin and glutaraldehyde. The retention of redox characteristics of glucose oxidase has been verified by cyclic voltammetry. The activity of the immobilized enzyme reduces to a quarter of its value when the enzyme is in solution but improves when coimmobilized with 1 urea. The potentiometric response builds up and remains stable after 100 s. It is sensitive to the thickness of the immobilizing matrix, pH and temperature. An improvement in the performance of the electrode has been achieved by coimmobilizing 2 urea and metal ions such as Mg²⁺ and Mn²⁺. The presence of Cu has been proved to be detrimental. The electrode has been calibrated in the 0.1–5.0 mM glucose concentration range. It gives a stable response for more than 50 independent assays and can be stored for 60 days without significant loss of function.     

Synthesis and characterization of phenothiazine sensor for spectrophotometric and fluorescence detection of cyanide

A sensitive and selective phenothiazine-based sensor (PTZ) has been successfully synthesized. The sensor PTZ displayed specific identification of CN⁻ ‘turn-off’ fluorescence responses with a quick reaction and strong reversibility in an acetonitrile:water (90:10, V/V) solution. The sensor PTZ for detecting CN⁻ exhibits the marked advantages of quenching the fluorescence intensity, fast response time (60 s), and low value of the detection limit. The concentration that is authorized for drinking water by the WHO (1.9 μM) is far higher than the detection limit, which was found to be 9.11 × 10⁻⁹. The sensor displays distinct colorimetric and spectrofluorometric detection for CN⁻ anion due to the addition of CN⁻ anion to the electron-deficient vinyl group of PTZ, which reduces intramolecular charge transfer efficiencies. The 1:2 binding mechanism of PTZ with CN⁻ was validated by fluorescence titration, Job's plot, HRMS, ¹H NMR, FTIR analysis, and density functional theory (DFT) investigations, among other methods. Additionally, the PTZ sensor was successfully used to precisely and accurately detect cyanide anions in actual water samples.     

Versatile and inexpensive Hall-Effect force sensor for mechanical characterization of soft biological materials

Mismatch of hierarchical structure and mechanical properties between tissue-engineered implants and native tissue may result in signal cues that negatively impact repair and remodeling. With bottom-up tissue engineering approaches, designing tissue components with proper microscale mechanical properties is crucial to achieve necessary macroscale properties in the final implant. However, characterizing microscale mechanical properties is challenging, and current methods do not provide the versatility and sensitivity required to measure these fragile, soft biological materials. Here, we developed a novel, highly sensitive Hall-Effect based force sensor that is capable of measuring mechanical properties of biological materials over wide force ranges (μN to N), allowing its use at all steps in layer-by-layer fabrication of engineered tissues. The force sensor design can be easily customized to measure specific force ranges, while remaining easy to fabricate using inexpensive, commercial materials. Although we used the force sensor to characterize mechanics of single-layer cell sheets and silk fibers, the design can be easily adapted for different applications spanning larger force ranges (>N). This platform is thus a novel, versatile, and practical tool for mechanically characterizing biological and biomimetic materials.     

A highly sensitive sensor for ethyl acetate by changing fluorescent colour of lanthanide complex

A lanthanide complex, namely, [La₂(L‐DBTA)₃ (CH₃OH)₂(H₂O)₂]?2H2O has been synthesized using a simple reaction of L‐O,O´‐dibenzoyl tartaric acid with LaCl₃?6H₂O under ambient temperature. The luminescence spectrum in the solid state at room temperature revealed that the complex exhibited blue‐light emission that originated from ligand. In addition, the lanthanide complex is developed as a fluorescent probe for sensing small molecules. Luminescence studies reveal that the lanthanide complex could detect ethyl acetate sensitively through fluorescence colour change from blue to yellow. Furthermore, the complex exhibited appealing features including high sensitivity and an ultrafast response.     

Distribution and chemical characterization of regular arrays in the cell walls of strains of the genus Lactobacillus

Abstract The presence of regular arrays (RAs) in the cell walls of strains of the genus Lactobacillus was examined by electron microscopy. The RAs were found in 6 species including L. bulgaricus, L. helveticus, L. acidophilus, L. fermentum, L. brevis and L. buchneri . The RAs were composed of a protein with an apparent M _r ranging from about 41000 to 55000, depending on the species upon sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The amino acid composition of the RA proteins was shown to be acidic and hydrophobic. The antigenicity of the RA protein from L. buchneri appeared to be specific but not common among the RA proteins from the other lactobacilli.     

A rapid bio‐optical sensor for diagnosing Q fever in clinical specimens

Recent zoonotic outbreaks, such as Zika, Middle East respiratory syndrome and Ebola, have highlighted the need for rapid and accurate diagnostic assays that can be used to aid pathogen control. Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by the transmission of Coxiella burnetii that can cause serious illness in humans through aerosols and is considered a potential bioterrorism agent. However, the existing assays are not suitable for the detection of this pathogen due to its low levels in real samples. We here describe a rapid bio‐optical sensor for the accurate detection of Q fever and validate its clinical utility. By combining a bio‐optical sensor, that transduces the presence of the target DNA based on binding‐induced changes in the refractive index on the waveguide surface in a label‐free and real‐time manner, with isothermal DNA amplification, this new diagnostic tool offers a rapid (<20 min), 1‐step DNA amplification/detection method. We confirmed the clinical sensitivity (>90%) of the bio‐optical sensor by detecting C. burnetii in 11 formalin‐fixed, paraffin‐embedded liver biopsy samples from acute Q fever hepatitis patients and in 16 blood plasma samples from patients in which Q fever is the cause of fever of unknown origin.      

苜蓿夜蛾葡萄糖氧化酶cDNA的克隆、表达及特性研究

【目的】从苜蓿夜蛾Heliothis viriplaca体内克隆葡萄糖氧化酶(Glucose oxidase,GOX)基因cDNA序列,并进行原核表达及活性测定。同时对GOX在不同组织的特异表达及对葡萄糖诱导反应的特性进行研究。【方法】以苜蓿夜蛾为材料提取总RNA,利用RT-PCR和cDNA末端快速扩增技术,扩增苜蓿夜蛾GOX基因全长cDNA序列。利用原核表达载体p ET-21b在大肠杆菌中表达苜蓿夜蛾的GOX基因,并用Ni-NTA亲和层析柱将带His-tag的目的蛋白进行纯化,再利用梯度透析法进行复性,以葡萄糖为底物进行酶的活性测定。同时利用Real-time PCR分析GOX的组织特异性表达和对葡萄糖的诱导反应。【结果】该cDNA序列有2 154个碱基,开放阅读框1 824个碱基,编码607个氨基酸组成的多肽,分子量为67.04 ku,多肽的等电点为5.13。该序列命名为Hv GOX,在Gen Bank的登录号为KT907054。序列分析表明,Hv GOX的氨基酸序列与其他昆虫的GOX氨基酸序列高度同源。该基因在大肠杆菌表达系统中成功地进行了诱导表达,表达出与预测的蛋白分子量相符的融合蛋白。由原核表达载体表达后的蛋白经过变性、纯化和复性后有活性。Real-time PCR结果表明,该基因在苜蓿夜蛾的不同组织均有m RNA水平的特异表达,其中在唾腺中的表达量最高;同时用0.01%、0.1%、1%和10%葡萄糖溶液浸泡的大豆叶喂食的幼虫,幼虫体内的GOX的表达均被诱导,且在10%的浓度时诱导表达量最高。【结论】本研究在苜蓿夜蛾体内获得一个新的葡萄糖氧化酶基因,该结果为进一步研究葡萄糖氧化酶在昆虫体内的生物功能奠定基础。     

In vivo evaluation of an electroenzymatic glucose sensor implanted in subcutaneous tissue

Cleanroom processing techniques have been used to mass-produce flexible, electroenzymatic glucose sensors designed for implantation in subcutaneous tissue. In vitro characterization studies have shown the sensor's performance to be acceptable. Initial in vivo studies were conducted with the sensor implanted in the subcutaneous tissue of rabbits. Sensors implanted in the subcutaneous tissue of normal human subjects showed an excellent correlation between glucose concentrations measured by the sensor and capillary finger sticks measured with a commercial analyzer.     

Physiological characterization of a microbial sensor containing the yeast Arxula adeninivorans LS3

The yeast Arxula adeninivorans LS3 is a suitable organism for use as part of a microbial sensor. In combination with an amperometric oxygen electrode the sensor offered a possibility for the physiological characterization of this yeast. About 300-400 measurements could be carried out with a single Arxula sensor. The microbial sensor was remarkably stable for over 35 days, when kept at 37 °C during the operation time and at room temperature overnight. The physiological characteristics of Arxula adeninivorans LS3 obtained with the sensor technique were identical to the data obtained with the conventional techniques. However, the sensor technique makes it additionally possible to quantify the physiological data. So the substrates ribose, citric acid, glycerol, oil and benzoate produced signals lower than 10% in comparison to the glucose signal. Fructose, xylose, sucrose, maltose, gentianose, glucosamine, glutamic acid, tryptophan, butyric acid, lauryl acid and propionic acid reached 10-70%, galactose, alanine, glycine, lysine and methionine signals were similar to the glucose signal whereas acetic acid, ethyl alcohol, capron acid, capryl acid and caproic acid reached the highest signals up to 434%.     

Colorimetric determination of fructose for the high-throughput microtiter plate assay of glucose isomerase

A colorimetric method for the reducing monosaccharide determination is optimized for the assay of glucose isomerase, which converts glucose (Glc) to fructose (Fru). Test solution was mixed with 20-fold volume of the 50 mM Na₂SiO₃, 600 mM Na₂MoO₄, and 0.95 M HCl aqueous solution (pH 4.5), in which a yellow molybdosilicate species was formed. The mixture was kept at 70 °C for 30 min. Test solution containing 10 mM level Fru gave a remarkable blue reaction mixture, in which the Mo(VI) species was reduced by Fru to form a blue molybdosilicate species. The blueness increased with the Fru concentration. Glc cannot render the reaction mixture blue as strong as Fru. Thus, the colorimetric method can be used advantageously for the determination of 10 mM level Fru in the Glc isomerase reaction mixture, even in the presence of 100 mM level Glc, and has been applied successfully to the microtiter plate assay of the enzyme.