A. Julio Reviejo

Disposable amperometric magneto-immunosensor for direct detection of tetracyclines antibiotics residues in milk.

The preparation and performance of a disposable amperometric magneto-immunosensor, involving the use of a selective capture antibody immobilized on the surface of protein G-functionalized magnetic beads (ProtG-MBs) and screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs), for the specific detection and quantification of tetracyclines (TCs) residues in milk is reported. A direct competitive immunoassay using a tracer with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) for the enzymatic labeling was performed. The amperometric response measured at -0.2 V vs. the silver pseudo-reference electrode of the SPCE upon the addition of H(2)O(2) in the presence of hydroquinone (HQ) as redox mediator was used as transduction signal. The developed methodology showed very low limits of detection (in the low ppb level) for 4 tetracycline antibiotics tested in untreated milk samples, and a good selectivity against other antibiotic residues frequently detected in milk and dairy products. The usefulness of the magneto-immunosensor was demonstrated by analyzing UHT whole milk samples spiked with 44 ng mL(-1) tetracycline (TC) as well as a reference milk containing a certified oxytetracycline (OTC) content. These features, together with the short analysis time (30 min), the simplicity, and easy automation and miniaturization of the required instrumentation make the developed methodology a promising alternative in the development of devices for on-site analysis.

Integrated disposable electrochemical immunosensors for the simultaneous determination of sulfonamide and tetracycline antibiotics residues in milk.

The design, preparation and analytical performance of a novel integrated amperometric immunosensor based on the immobilization of selective capture antibodies on the surface of Protein G-modified screen-printed dual carbon electrodes (SPdCEs) for the multiplexed determination of sulfonamide and tetracycline antibiotics residues in milk is reported in this work. Protein G was covalently immobilized onto a 4-aminobenzoic acid (4-ABA) film grafted on the disposable electrode, and a direct competitive immunoassay using horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-labeled tracers was performed. The amperometric responses measured at -0.2 V vs. the silver pseudo-reference electrode of the SPdCE upon the addition of H2O2 in the presence of hydroquinone (HQ) as mediator were used to monitor the extent of the immunoreactions. The developed methodology showed very low limits of detection (in the low ppb level) for sulfonamide and tetracycline antibiotics tested in untreated milk samples, and a good selectivity against other antibiotic residues frequently detected in milk and dairy products. The usefulness of the dual immunosensor was demonstrated by analyzing spiked milk samples as well as a reference milk containing a certified oxytetracycline (OTC) content. Good recoveries were attained in an analysis time of 30 min.

Disposable and integrated amperometric immunosensor for direct determination of sulfonamide antibiotics in milk.

The preparation and performance of a disposable amperometric immunosensor, based on the use of a selective capture antibody and screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs), for the specific detection and quantification of sulfonamide residues in milk is reported. The antibody was covalently immobilized onto a 4-aminobenzoic acid (4-ABA) film grafted on the disposable electrode, and a direct competitive immunoassay using a tracer with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) for the enzymatic labeling was performed. The amperometric response measured at -0.2 V vs the silver pseudo-reference electrode of the SPCE upon the addition of H(2)O(2) in the presence of hydroquinone (HQ) as mediator was used as transduction signal. The developed methodology showed very low limits of detection (in the low ppb level) for 6 sulfonamide antibiotics tested in untreated milk samples, and a good selectivity against other families of antibiotics residues frequently detected in milk and dairy products. These features, together with the short analysis time (30 min), the simplicity, and easy automation and miniaturization of the required instrumentation make the developed methodology a promising alternative in the development of devices for on-site analysis.

Amperometric fructose sensor based on ferrocyanide modified screen-printed carbon electrode

The first fructose sensor using a commercial screen-printed ferrocyanide/carbon electrodes (SPFCE) is reported here. The ferrocyanide is included in the carbon ink of the commercial screen-printed carbon electrode. The immobilization of enzyme d-fructose dehydrogenase (FDH) was carried out in an easy way. An aliquot of 10μL FDH was deposited on the electrode surface and left there until dried (approximately 1h) at room temperature. The sensor, so constructed, shows a good sensitivity to fructose (1.25μA/mM) with a slope deviation of ±0.02μA/mM and a linear range comprised between 0.1 and 1mM of fructose, with a limit of detection of 0.05mM. These sensors show good intersensors reproducibility after a previous pretreatment and a high stability. Fructose was determined in real samples as honey, Cola, fruit juices (orange, tomato, apple and pineapple), red wine, red and white grapes, musts and liquor of peach with a good accuracy.

Comparative study of different alcohol sensors based on Screen-Printed Carbon Electrodes

Different very simple single-use alcohol enzyme sensors were developed using alcohol oxidase (AOX) from three different yeast, Hansenula sp., Pichia pastoris and Candida boidinii, and employing three different commercial mediator-based Screen-Printed Carbon Electrodes as transducers. The mediators tested, Prussian Blue, Ferrocyanide and Co-phthalocyanine were included into the ink of the working electrode. The procedure to obtain these sensors consists of the immobilization of the enzyme on the electrode surface by adsorption. For the immobilization, an AOX solution is deposited on the working electrode and left until dried (1h) at room temperature. The best results were obtained with the biosensor using Screen-Printed Co-phthalocyanine/Carbon Electrode and AOX from Hansenula sp. The reduced cobalt-phthalocyanine form is amperometrically detected at +0.4V (vs. Ag pseudo reference electrode). This sensor shows good sensitivity (1211 nA mM(-1)), high precision (2.1% RSD value for the slope value of the calibration plot) and wide linear response (0.05-1.00 mM) for ethanol determination. The sensor provides also accurate results for ethanol quantification in alcoholic drinks.

Integrated Amperometric Affinity Biosensors Using Co2+–Tetradentate Nitrilotriacetic Acid Modified Disposable Carbon Electrodes: Application to the Determination of β-Lactam Antibiotics

A novel strategy for the construction of disposable amperometric affinity biosensors is described in this work. The approach uses a recombinant bacterial penicillin binding protein (PBP) tagged by an N-terminal hexahistidine tail which was immobilized onto Co(2+)-tetradentate nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA)-modified screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs). The biosensor was employed for the specific detection and quantification of β-lactam antibiotics residues in milk, which was accomplished by means of a direct competitive assay using a tracer with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) for the enzymatic labeling. The amperometric response measured at -0.20 V versus the Ag pseudoreference electrode of the SPCE upon the addition of H2O2 in the presence of hydroquinone (HQ) as redox mediator was used as the transduction signal. The developed affinity sensor allowed limits of detection to be obtained in the low part-per-billion level for the antibiotics tested in untreated milk samples. Moreover, the biosensor exhibited a good selectivity against other antibiotics residues frequently detected in milk and dairy products. The analysis time was of approximately 30 min.

Enzymic assays of organic peroxides in microemulsion systems

Microemulsions are shown to extend the scope of enzymic amperometric assays towards both hydrophobic and hydrophilic compounds. This possibility is illustrated for amperometric monitoring of organic peroxides in oil-in-water emulsions containing horseradish peroxidase. Enhanced sensitivity (compared with work in pure aqueous solution) is observed also for water-soluble analytes, and is attributed to changes in the local substrate concentration. The effect of the emulsion structure on the biocatalytic activity and analytical performance is explored. Both hydrophobic and hydrophilic mediators can be used. Amperometry can also be used for elucidating biocatalytic conversions in microemulsions. Future prospects are discussed.

Comparison of Different Strategies for the Development of Highly Sensitive Electrochemical Nucleic Acid Biosensors Using Neither Nanomaterials nor Nucleic Acid Amplification

Currently, electrochemical nucleic acid-based biosensing methodologies involving hybridization assays, specific recognition of RNA/DNA and RNA/RNA duplexes, and amplification systems provide an attractive alternative to conventional quantification strategies for the routine determination of relevant nucleic acids at different settings. A particularly relevant objective in the development of such nucleic acid biosensors is the design of as many as possible affordable, quick, and simple methods while keeping the required sensitivity. With this aim in mind, this work reports, for the first time, a thorough comparison between 11 methodologies that involve different assay formats and labeling strategies for targeting the same DNA. The assayed approaches use conventional sandwich and competitive hybridization assays, direct hybridization coupled to bioreceptors with affinity for RNA/DNA duplexes, multienzyme labeling bioreagents, and DNA concatamers. All of them have been implemented on the surface of magnetic beads (MBs) and involve amperometric transduction at screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs). The influence of the formed duplex length and of the labeling strategy have also been evaluated. Results demonstrate that these strategies can provide very sensitive methods without the need for using nanomaterials or polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In addition, the sensitivity can be tailored within several orders of magnitude simply by varying the bioassay format, hybrid length or labeling strategy. This comparative study allowed us to conclude that the use of strategies involving longer hybrids, the use of antibodies with specificity for RNA/DNA heteroduplexes and labeling with bacterial antibody binding proteins conjugated with multiple enzyme molecules, provides the best sensitivity.

Disposable Amperometric Polymerase Chain Reaction-Free Biosensor for Direct Detection of Adulteration with Horsemeat in Raw Lysates Targeting Mitochondrial DNA

A novel electrochemical disposable nucleic acid biosensor for simple, rapid, and specific detection of adulterations with horsemeat is reported in this work. The biosensing platform involves immobilization of a 40-mer RNA probe specific for a characteristic fragment of the mitochondrial DNA D-loop region of horse onto the surface of magnetic microcarriers. In addition, signal amplification was accomplished by using a commercial antibody specific to RNA/DNA duplexes and a bacterial protein conjugated with a horseradish peroxidase homopolymer (ProtA-HRP40). Amperometric detection at -0.20 V vs Ag pseudoreference electrode was carried out at disposable screen-printed carbon electrodes. The methodology achieved a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.12 pM (3.0 attomoles) for the synthetic target and showed ability to discriminate between raw beef and horsemeat using just 50 ng of total extracted mitochondrial DNA (∼16 660 bp in length) without previous fragmentation. The biosensor also allowed discrimination between 100% raw beef and beef meat samples spiked with only 0.5% (w/w) horse meat (levels established by the European Commission) using raw mitochondrial lysates without DNA extraction or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification in just 75 min. These interesting features made the developed methodology an extremely interesting tool for beef meat screening, and it can be easily adapted to the determination of other meat adulterations by selection of the appropriate specific fragments of the mitochondrial DNA region and capture probes.

CHAPTER 31:Lactose in Milk and Dairy Products: A Focus on Biosensors

Lactose is the characteristic carbohydrate of milk and dairy products and its analysis is of high significance for the quality assurance in dairy industry. Furthermore, the measurement of lactose is especially relevant with medical purposes in the case of people suffering from lactose intolerance. Although the analysis of lactose in milk and dairy products is not new, there is a great demand for rapid, simple and economical analytical methodologies for lactose quantification. In this context, the biosensors technology offers exciting new possibilities taking into account the excellent analytical performance that this kind of versatile analytical devices can provide. This chapter is intended to critically review the role of biosensors designed for lactose determination.