Sensitive immunosensor for tumor necrosis factor α based on dual signal amplification of ferrocene modified self-assembled peptide nanowire and glucose oxidase functionalized gold nanorod

Sensitive electrochemical immunosensor for the detection of protein biomarker tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) was reported that uses ferrocene carboxylic acid (Fc) functionalized self-assembled peptide nanowire (Fc-PNW) as sensor platform and glucose oxidase (GOx) modified gold nanorod (GNR) as label. Greatly enhanced sensitivity is achieved based on a dual signal amplification strategy: first, the synthesized Fc-PNW used as the sensor platform increased the loading of primary anti-TNF-α antibody (Ab(1)) onto electrode surface due to its large surface area. At the same time, the Fc moiety on the nanowire is used as a mediator for GOx to catalyze the glucose reaction. Second, multiple GOx and secondary anti-TNF-α antibody (Ab(2)) molecules are bounded onto each GNR to increase the sensitivity of the immunosensor. After the preparation of the immunosensor based on the traditional sandwich protocol, the response of the immunosensor towards glucose was used as a signal to differentiate various concentrations of TNF-α. The resulting immunosensor has high sensitivity, wide linear range (0.005-10ng/mL) and good selectivity. This immunosensor preparation strategy is a promising platform for clinical screening of protein biomarkers.     

Reversible Two‐Enzyme Coimmobilization on pH‐Responsive Imprinted Monolith for Glucose Detection

A new enzymatic glucose biosensor based on reversible co‐immobilization of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and glucose oxidase (GOx) on a pH‐responsive imprinted monolith is prepared. The poly(4‐vinylphenylboronic acid)‐grafted imprinted polymer using HRP as a template is formed via surface initiated atom transfer radical polymerization within the pores of brominated poly(glycidyl methacrylate‐co‐ethylene dimethacrylate) macroporous monolith contained in a 100 μm I.D. capillary column. The two enzymes conjugate is formed via the strong affinity interaction between biotin‐labeled GOx and streptavidin‐labeled HRP. The modulation of the external pH value enables reusability of the biosensor simply using stripping of the inactive enzymes at a low pH value and subsequent immobilization of fresh enzymes at a high pH value. Under the optimized conditions, the enzymatic biosensor features excellent performance in detection of glucose with a linear range of its concentration from 0.11 to 38.85 mmol/L and a limit of detection of 0.03 mmol/L. A relative standard deviation of 3.7% is calculated from determination of twenty glucose samples. This novel enzymatic sensing system is successfully applied for determination of glucose in human serum, and confirms an enhancement both in selectivity and specificity compared to the more traditionally clinical methods.     

Making glucose oxidase fit for biofuel cell applications by directed protein evolution

Progress in miniature chip-design raises demands for implantable power sources in health care applications such as continuous glucose monitoring of diabetic patients. Pioneered by Adam Heller, miniaturized enzymatic biofuel cells (mBCs) convert blood sugars into electrical energy by employing for example glucose oxidase (GOx) on the anode and bilirubin oxidase on the cathode. To match application demands it is crucial to increase lifetime and power output of mBCs. The power output has been limited by the performance of GOx on the anode. We developed a glucose oxidase detection assay (GODA) as medium-throughput screening system for improving GOx properties by directed protein evolution. GODA is a reaction product detection assay based on coupled enzymatic reactions leading to NADPH formation which is recorded at 340 nm. The main advantage of the assay is that it detects the production of d-gluconolactone instead of the side-product hydrogen peroxide and enables to improve bioelectrochemical properties of GOx. For validating the screening system, a mutagenic library of GOx from Aspergillus niger (EC 1.1.3.4) was generated and screened for improved activity using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as host. Directed evolution resulted in a GOx mutant I115V with 1.4-1.5-fold improved activity for beta-d-glucose (Vmax from 7.94 to 10.81 micromol min(-1) mg(-1); Km approximately 19-21 mM) and oxygen consumption kinetics correlate well [Vmax (O2) from 5.94 to 8.34 micromol min(-1) mg(-1); Km (O2) from 700 to 474 microM]. The developed mutagenic protocol and GODA represent a proof-of-principle that GOx can be evolved by directed evolution in S. cerevisiae for putative use in biofuel cells.     

Preserved enzymatic activity of glucose oxidase immobilized on unmodified electrodes for glucose detection

Glucose sensing electrodes have been realized by immobilizing glucose oxidase (GOx) on unmodified edge plane of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (epHOPG) and the native oxide of heavily doped silicon (SiO2/Si). Both kinds of electrode show direct interfacial electron transfer due to the redox process of the immobilized GOx. The measured formal potential of the redox process agrees with that of the native enzyme, suggesting that the immobilized GOx has retained its enzymatic activity. The electron transfer rates of the GOx immobilized electrode are 2s(-1) for GOx/epHOPG electrode and 7.9s(-1) for GOx/SiO2/Si electrode, which are greater than those for which GOx is immobilized on modified electrodes, probably due to the fact that the enzyme makes direct contact to electrode surface. The preservation of the enzymatic activity of the immobilized GOx has been confirmed by observing the response of the GOx/epHOPG and GOx/SiO2/Si electrodes to glucose with a detection limit of 0.050 mM. The response signals the catalyzed oxidation of glucose and, therefore, confirms that the immobilized GOx retained its enzymatic activity. The properties of the electrode as a glucose sensor are presented.     

Photolithographic fabrication of poly(ethylene glycol) microstructures for hydrogel-based microreactors and spatially addressed microarrays

We describe the fabrication of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEG-DA) hydrogel microstructures with a high aspect ratio and the use of hydrogel microstructures containing the enzyme beta-galactosidase (beta-Gal) or glucose oxidase (GOx)/horseradish peroxidase (HRP) as biosensing components for the simultaneous detection of multiple analytes. The diameters of the hydrogel microstructures were almost the same at the top and at the bottom, indicating that no differential curing occurred through the thickness of the hydrogel microstructure. Using the hydrogel microstructures as microreactors, beta-Gal or GOx/HRP was trapped in the hydrogel array, and the time-dependent fluorescence intensities of the hydrogel array were investigated to determine the dynamic uptake of substrates into the PEG-DA hydrogel. The time required to reach steady-state fluorescence by glucose diffusing into the hydrogel and its enzymatic reactions with GOx and HRP was half the time required for resorufin beta-D-galactopyranoside (RGB) when used as the substrate for beta-Gal. Spatially addressed hydrogel microarrays containing different enzymes were micropatterned for the simultaneous detection of multiple analytes, and glucose and RGB solutions were incubated as substrates. These results indicate that there was no cross-talk between the beta-Gal-immobilizing hydrogel micropatches and the GOx/HRP-immobilizing micropatches.     

Signal amplification through nucleotide extension and excision on a dendritic DNA platform

Techniques that provide strong signal amplification are useful in diagnostic applications, especially in detecting low concentrations of non-amplifiable target molecules. A versatile and strong signal amplification method based on activities of a DNA polymerase to generate high concentrations of pyrophosphate (PPi) is described. The generation of PPi is catalyzed by nucleotide extension and excision activities of a DNA polymerase on an oligonucleotide cassette. The signal is generated upon enzymatic conversion of PPi to ATP and ATP levels subsequently detected with firefly luciferase. Bioluminesence produced by an oligonucleotide cassette consisting of just two polymerase reaction sites is sufficient to detect them at low attomole levels. The attachment of a large number of these oligonucleotide cassettes to DNA dendrimers enabled the detection of such polyvalent substrate molecules at low zeptomole (10^–21 mol) concentrations. The extent of signal amplification obtained with dendrimer substrates is comparable to exponential target amplifications provided by nucleic acid amplification methods. The attachment of such PPi-generating dendritic DNA platforms to ligands that mediate target recognition would potentially permit detection of extremely low concentrations of analytes in diagnostic assays.     

A novel electrochemical immunoassay based on diazotization-coupled functionalized bioconjugates as trace labels for ultrasensitive detection of carcinoembryonic antigen

In this article, a novel sandwich-type electrochemical immunosensor based on the signal amplification strategy of diazotization-coupling concept for ultrasensitive detection of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) was reported. It operates through physisorption of monoclonal anti-CEA on 4-aminothiophenol (4Atp) functionalized gold electrode interface as the detection platform. Diazo-4Atp-coupled-thionine (Thi)-conjugated gold nanoparticles (GNPs) were prepared for immobilization of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and secondary anti-CEA to form core-shell bioconjugates that were used as electrochemical signal amplification reagent. The sensitivity of the immunosensor was greatly amplified by a dual amplification: one is that a large number of thionine and HRP was introduced on the electrode surface through sandwich immunoreaction, the other is that HRP as enhancer could catalyze the oxidation reaction of thionine by H(2)O(2), which results in great enhancement of the reduction peak current. Thus, the bioconjugates-based assay provided an amplification approach for detecting CEA at trace levels and led to a detection limit as low as 0.7 pg/mL (at a three times signal-to-noise ratio) that is well-below the threshold value of 2.5 ng/mL for clinical diagnosis. The assay was evaluated for clinical serum samples with various CEA concentrations and received in excellent accordance with the results obtained from the referenced enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).     

Gold coated ferric oxide nanoparticles based disposable magnetic genosensors for the detection of DNA hybridization processes

In this article, a disposable magnetic DNA sensor using an enzymatic amplification strategy for the detection of specific hybridization processes, based on the coupling of streptavidin-peroxidase to biotinylated target sequences, has been developed. A thiolated 19-mer capture probe was attached to gold coated ferric oxide nanoparticles and hybridization with the biotinylated target was allowed to proceed. Then, a streptavidin-peroxide was attached to the biotinylated target and the resulting modified gold coated ferric oxide nanoparticles were captured by a magnetic field on the surface of a home-made carbon screen printed electrode (SPE). Using hydroquinone as a mediator, a square wave voltammetric procedure was chosen to detect the hybridization process after the addition of hydrogen peroxide. Different aspects concerning the assay protocol and nanoparticles fabrication were optimized in order to improve the sensitivity of the developed methodology. A low detection limit (31 pM) with good stability (RSD=7.04%, n=10) was obtained without the need of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification.     

Introduction of a novel HRP substrate-Nanogold probe for signal amplification in immunocytochemistry.

Amplification of immunological signals with catalyzed reporter deposition (CARD) allows improved detection of scarce tissue antigens in light and electron microscopy. The technique takes advantage of the oxidation ability of horseradish peroxidase (HRP), in the presence of hydrogen peroxide, to yield the accumulation of one of its specific reporter-tagged substrates. This immunocytochemical approach continues to be improved by the introduction of new reporter molecules tagged to tyramine or to other HRP substrates. In this study we introduced a novel HRP substrate tagged to Nanogold particles. The amplification protocol is based on the application of a specific primary antibody, a biotinylated secondary antibody, streptavidin-HRP, and an HRP substrate coupled to Nanogold, followed by silver intensification. In addition to amplification of immunological signals of high resolution, direct accumulation of Nanogold particles at target sites by enzymatic activity of HRP improves the efficiency of the technique compared to other amplification protocols. Moreover, this approach combines the CARD amplification potentials with the ultrasmall gold probe and the silver intensification method. Immunolabeling obtained by light and electron microscopy, as well as immunodot assay using this new amplification strategy, appear to be highly sensitive, specific, and of enhanced intensity.     

An amperometric biosensor based on a composite of single-walled carbon nanotubes, plasma-polymerized thin film, and an enzyme

We report on an amperometric biosensor that is based on a nanocomposite of carbon nanotubes (CNT), a nano-thin plasma-polymerized film (PPF), and glucose oxidase (GOx) as an enzyme model. A mixture of the GOx and a CNT film is sandwiched with 10-nm-thick acetonitrile PPFs. Under PPF layer was deposited onto a sputtered gold electrode. To facilitate the electrochemical communication between the CNT layer and GOx, CNT was treated with nitrogen or oxygen plasma. The resulting device showed that the oxidizing current response due to enzymatic reaction was 4-16-fold larger than that with only CNT or PPF, showing that the PPF and/or plasma process is an enzyme-friendly platform for designing electrochemical communication from the reaction center of GOx to the electrode via CNTs. The optimized glucose biosensor showed high sensitivity (sensitivity of 42 microA mM(-1)cm(-2), correlation coefficient of 0.992, linear response range of 0.025-2.2 mM, and a detection limit of 6 microM at signal/noise ratio of 3, +0.8 V versus Ag/AgCl), high selectivity (almost no interference by 0.5 mM ascorbic acid) for glucose quantification, and rapid response (<4 s to reach 95% of maximum response). Additionally, the devices showed a small and stable background current (0.35+/-0.013 microA) compared with the glucose response (ca. 10 microA at 10mM glucose) and suitable reproducibility from sample-to-sample (<3%, n=4).     

Fluorescence imaging of the activity of glucose oxidase using a hydrogen-peroxide-sensitive europium probe

A method for optical imaging of the activity of glucose oxidase (GOx) using a fluorescent europium(III) tetracycline probe for hydrogen peroxide is presented. A decay time in the microsecond range and the large Stokes shift of 210 nm of the probe facilitate intensity-based, time-resolved, and decay-time-based imaging of glucose oxidase. Four methods for imaging the activity of GOx were compared, and rapid lifetime determination imaging was found to be the best in giving a linear range from 0.32 to 2.7 m Unit/mL. The detection limit is 0.32 m Unit/mL (1.7 ng mL(-1)) which is similar to that of the time-resolved (gated) imaging using a microtiterplate reader. Fluorescent imaging of the activity of GOx is considered to be a useful tool for GOx-based immunoassays with potential for high-throughput screening, immobilization studies, and biosensor array technologies.     

Dual electrochemical determination of glucose and insulin using enzyme and ferrocene microcapsules

Dual electrochemical determination of glucose and insulin has been developed, based on enzymatic reaction and immunoassay with utilization of ferrocene microcapsules, respectively. Glucose was determined through electrochemical oxidation of formed product, hydrogen peroxide, by the action of glucose oxidase (GOx). The layer-by-layer (LbL) films on the ferrocene microcrystal followed by anti-insulin antibody sensitization were employed for the biolabled ferrocene microcapsules production. The antibody sensitized ferrocene microcapsules worked as a probe in the proposed system. The microcapsules provided a higher signal generating molecule to antibody (S/P) ratio of 4.52x10(6) to 12.4x10(6). Microcapsules with different antibody loads (388-1070 antibody molecules per capsule) were subjected to a solid-phase immunoassay for the detection of insulin. The microcapsule having 1030 anti-insulin antibody molecules per capsule demonstrated good performance for insulin determination. The calibration curve for insulin had a linear range of 10(-10) to 10(-7) g mL(-1) with R(2)=0.990, 3.9% R.S.D. The limit of detection for insulin was 10 pg mL(-1) of 100 microL sample (equivalent to 10(-12)g of insulin). The determination range for the glucose was 0.5 and 40 mM with R(2)=0.996 and 4.1% R.S.D.     

Detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae DNA by using polymerase chain reaction and microwell hybridization with Europium-labelled probes

The present paper describes a novel modification of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae DNA in clinical specimens. PCR was based on the detection of a 209-base pair segment of the S. pneumoniae pneumolysin gene. For the demonstration of the amplification product, microwell hybridization with a Europium-labelled oligonucleotide probe complementary to a biotinylated strand of the PCR product was performed, and the presence of the PCR product was monitored by time-resolved fluorescence (TRF) of the Europium chelate. The sensitivity of the assay for purified S. pneumoniae DNA was 50 fg DNA corresponding to 20 genome equivalents of S. pneumoniae DNA. The efficiency of the hybridization step was monitored by using known amounts of synthetic target oligonucleotides as standards. Sensitivity of 3×10⁸ molecules per individual reaction well was achieved with a 30-min attachment time and a 3-h hybridization time.

Detection of PCR-amplified products by the microwell hybridization technique and TRF was compared to agarose gel electrophoresis in 50 middle ear fluid samples obtained from children with acute otitis media. The agarose gel and TRF detection methods identified all culture-positive samples, but both were also positive for 55% of the culture-negative samples. The results suggest that the detection of amplified PCR products by microwell hybridization using Europium-labelled oligonucleotides is a reliable method for the demonstration of the pneumolysin gene fragment. Furthermore, the method is suitable for automation and, thus, for testing high numbers of samples. The clinical significance of the PCR findings remains to be studied.     

Label-free optical bifunctional oligonucleotide probe for homogeneous amplification detection of disease markers

Oligonucleotide-based detection schemes that avoid chemical modification possess significant advantages, including simplified design, intrinsic affinity for targets, low cost and ease to extend applications. In this contribution, we developed a label-free self-locked bifunctional oligonucleotide probe (signaling probe) for the detection of different disease markers in parallel. Two signal enhancement techniques based on isothermal circular strand-displacement polymerization reaction, cyclical nucleic acid strand-displacement polymerization (CNDP) and cyclical common (nonnucleic acid) target-displacement polymerization (CCDP), were employed to implement the amplification assay for p53 gene and PDGF-BB, respectively. The attractive assay properties confirmed the effectiveness of isothermal polymerization in common biosensing systems without evolving any chemical modification: PDGF could be detected down to 0.87ng/mL, and a dynamic response range of 8-5000ng/mL was achieved; The capability to screen the p53 gene was also considerably improved, including the detection limit, sensitivity, dynamic range and so on. Moreover, because no any chemical modification of the signaling probe was acquired and different targets were separately detected in homogeneous solution. This interrogating platform exhibits the design flexibility, convenience, simplicity and cost-effectiveness. The success achieved here is expected to serve as a significant step toward the development of robust label-free oligonucleotide probes in biomarker profiling and disease diagnostics.     

Enzymatically induced formation of neodymium hexacyanoferrate nanoparticles on the glucose oxidase/chitosan modified glass carbon electrode for the detection of glucose

The formation of neodymium hexacyanoferrate (NdHCF) nanoparticles (NPs) on the surface of glucose oxidase/chitosan (GOx/CHIT) modified glass carbon electrode induced by enzymatic reaction was described and characterized. CHIT can be used not only as enzyme immobilizer, but also to provide active sites for NPs growth. Results showed that the optimized conditions of the GOx/CHIT film induced NdHCF NPs for the biosensing of glucose were 1.0mM Nd(3+) and 20.0mM Fe(CN)(6)(3-). The biocatalyzed generation of NdHCF NPs enabled the development of an electrochemical biosensor for glucose. The calculated apparent Michaelis-Menten constant was 7.5mM. The linear range for glucose detection was 0.01-10.0mM with the correlation coefficient of 0.9946, and the detection limit was 5muM (S/N=3). Furthermore, this system avoids the interferences of other species during the biosensing process and can be used for the determination of glucose in human plasma samples.     

An enhanced ELISA based on modified colloidal gold nanoparticles for the detection of Pb(II)

A novel probe based on colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) modified with goat anti-mouse IgG and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was synthesized and an enhanced enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on the probe was developed. In the assay, the synthesized probe is bound with a monoclonal antibody (McAb) which is competitively bound by coated BSA-ITCBE-Pb(II) on plate and Pb(II) in samples. The HRP, used here for signal amplification catalytically oxidize the substrate and generate optical signals that is related to the concentration of Pb(II) and can be measured spectrophotometrically. For the monodisperse AuNPs having high surface areas, it can be conjugated with more amount of HRP than that of IgG. Therefore, compared with traditional ELISA, the signal amplification of catalytically oxidized substrate was enhanced. The detection limit for this novel modified AuNPs probe-based assay was 9 pg mL(-1). The recoveries obtained by standard Pb(II) addition to real samples, including a commercial mineral water, tap water, and lake water were all from 94.9% to 102.9%. And the coefficient of variation (CV) value of all samples was less than 10%. The results indicated that the enhanced assay gave higher sensitivity and reliable reproducibility. It could provide a general detection format for low-molecular weight contaminants.     

Design of an amperometric biosensor using polypyrrole-microgel composites containing glucose oxidase

A new material consisting of a water-dispersed complex of polypyrrole-polystyrensulfonate (PPy) embedded in polyacrylamide (PA) has been prepared and tested as enzyme immobilizing system for its use in amperometric biosensors. Glucose oxidase (GOx) and the water-dispersed polypyrrole complex were entrapped within polyacrylamide microgels by polymerization of acrylamide in the dispersed phase of concentrated emulsions containing GOx and PPy. Polymerization of the dispersed phase provides microparticles whose size lies between 3.5 and 7 microm. The aim of incorporating polypyrrole into the polyacrylamide microparticles was to facilitate the direct transfer of the electrons released in the enzymatic reaction from the catalytic site to the platinum electrode surface. The conductivity of the microparticles was measured by a four-point probe method and confirmed by the successful anaerobic detection of glucose by the biosensor. Thus, the polyacrylamide-polypyrrole (PAPPy) microparticles combine the conductivity of polypyrrole and the pore size control of polyacrylamide. The effects of the polyacrylamide-polypyrrole ratio and cross-linking on the biosensor response have been investigated, as well as the influence of analytical parameters such as pH and enzymatic loading. The PAPPy biosensor is free of interferences arising from ascorbic and uric acids, which allows its use for quantitative analysis in human blood serum.     

Rational redesign of glucose oxidase for improved catalytic function and stability

Glucose oxidase (GOx) is an enzymatic workhorse used in the food and wine industries to combat microbial contamination, to produce wines with lowered alcohol content, as the recognition element in amperometric glucose sensors, and as an anodic catalyst in biofuel cells. It is naturally produced by several species of fungi, and genetic variants are known to differ considerably in both stability and activity. Two of the more widely studied glucose oxidases come from the species Aspergillus niger (A. niger) and Penicillium amagasakiense (P. amag.), which have both had their respective genes isolated and sequenced. GOx from A. niger is known to be more stable than GOx from P. amag., while GOx from P. amag. has a six-fold superior substrate affinity (K(M)) and nearly four-fold greater catalytic rate (k(cat)). Here we sought to combine genetic elements from these two varieties to produce an enzyme displaying both superior catalytic capacity and stability. A comparison of the genes from the two organisms revealed 17 residues that differ between their active sites and cofactor binding regions. Fifteen of these residues in a parental A. niger GOx were altered to either mirror the corresponding residues in P. amag. GOx, or mutated into all possible amino acids via saturation mutagenesis. Ultimately, four mutants were identified with significantly improved catalytic activity. A single point mutation from threonine to serine at amino acid 132 (mutant T132S, numbering includes leader peptide) led to a three-fold improvement in k(cat) at the expense of a 3% loss of substrate affinity (increase in apparent K(M) for glucose) resulting in a specify constant (k(cat)/K(M)) of 23.8 (mM(-1) · s(-1)) compared to 8.39 for the parental (A. niger) GOx and 170 for the P. amag. GOx. Three other mutant enzymes were also identified that had improvements in overall catalysis: V42Y, and the double mutants T132S/T56V and T132S/V42Y, with specificity constants of 31.5, 32.2, and 31.8 mM(-1) · s(-1), respectively. The thermal stability of these mutants was also measured and showed moderate improvement over the parental strain.