Marco Mascini

Carbon and gold electrodes as electrochemical transducers for DNA hybridisation sensors

Genosensor technology relying on the use of carbon and gold electrodes is reviewed. The key steps of each analytical procedure, namely DNA-probe immobilisation, hybridisation, labelling and electrochemical investigation of the surface, are discussed in detail with separate sections devoted to label-free and newly emerging magnetic assays. Special emphasis has been given to protocols that have been used with real DNA samples.

Surface plasmon resonance imaging for affinity-based biosensors

SPR imaging (SPRi) is at the forefront of optical label-free and real-time detection. It offers the possibility of monitoring hundreds of biological interactions simultaneously and from the binding profiles, allows the estimation of the kinetic parameters of the interactions between the immobilised probes and the ligands in solution. We review the current state of development of SPRi technology and its application including commercially available SPRi instruments. Attention is also given to surface chemistries for biochip functionalisation and suitable approaches to improve sensitivity.

New trends in affinity sensing: aptamers for ligand binding

Aptamers are artificial nucleic acid ligands that can be generated against amino acids, drugs, proteins and other molecules. They are isolated from complex libraries of synthetic nucleic acids by an iterative process of adsorption, recovery and amplification. This review described the in vitro process to obtain aptamers (SELEX). It mentions the main characteristics of these molecules (i.e. affinity, specificity and stability). Moreover, it discusses advantages over antibodies. It reports potential applications of aptamers in analytical and diagnostic assays as biocomponents of biosensors (aptasensors) and allosteric ribozymes (aptazymes).

Electrochemical and piezoelectric DNA biosensors for hybridisation detection

DNA biosensors (or genosensors) are analytical devices that result from the integration of a sequence-specific probe and a signal transducer. Among other techniques, electrochemical and piezoelectric methods have recently emerged as the most attractive due to their simplicity, low instrumentation costs, possibility for real-time and label-free detection and generally high sensitivity. Focusing on the most recent activity of worldwide researchers, the aim of the present review is to give the readers a critical overview of some important aspects that contribute in creating successful genosensing devices. Advantages and disadvantages of different sensing materials, probe immobilisation chemistries, hybridisation conditions, transducing principles and amplification strategies will be discussed in detail. Dedicated sections will also address the issues of probe design and real samples pre-treatment. Special emphasis will be finally given to those protocols that, being implemented into an array format, are already penetrating the molecular diagnostics market.

Nucleic Acid and Peptide Aptamers: Fundamentals and Bioanalytical Aspects

In recent years new nucleic acid and protein-based combinatorial molecules have attracted the attention of researchers working in various areas of science, ranging from medicine to analytical chemistry. These molecules, called aptamers, have been proposed as alternatives to antibodies in many different applications. The aim of this Review is to illustrate the peculiarities of these combinatorial molecules which have initially been explored for their importance in molecular medicine, but have enormous potential in other biotechnological fields historically dominated by antibodies, such as bioassays. A description of these molecules is given, and the methods for their selection and production are also summarized. Moreover, critical aspects related to these molecules are discussed.

Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) affinity biosensor for genetically modified organisms (GMOs) detection.

A DNA piezoelectric sensor has been developed for the detection of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Single stranded DNA (ssDNA) probes were immobilised on the sensor surface of a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) device and the hybridisation between the immobilised probe and the target complementary sequence in solution was monitored. The probe sequences were internal to the sequence of the 35S promoter (P) and Nos terminator (T), which are inserted sequences in the genome of GMOs regulating the transgene expression. Two different probe immobilisation procedures were applied: (a) a thiol-dextran procedure and (b) a thiol-derivatised probe and blocking thiol procedure. The system has been optimised using synthetic oligonucleotides, which were then applied to samples of plasmidic and genomic DNA isolated from the pBI121 plasmid, certified reference materials (CRM), and real samples amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The analytical parameters of the sensor have been investigated (sensitivity, reproducibility, lifetime etc.). The results obtained showed that both immobilisation procedures enabled sensitive and specific detection of GMOs, providing a useful tool for screening analysis in food samples.

Electrochemical sensor and biosensor for polyphenols detection in olive oils.

Abstract The aim of the work was to compare different techniques, in evaluating the phenolic content of an extra-virgin olive oil with varying storage time and storage conditions. A disposable screen-printed sensor (SPE) was coupled with differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) to determine the phenolic fractions after extraction with a glycine buffer; DPV parameters were chosen in order to study the oxidation peak of oleuropein, which was used as reference compound. A calibration curve of oleuropein was performed in glycine buffer 10 mM, pH=2, NaCl 10 mM (D.L.=0.25 ppm oleuropein, RSD=7%). Moreover a tyrosinase based biosensor operating in organic solvent (hexane) was also assembled, using an amperometric oxygen probe as transducer. The calibration curves were realised using flow injection analysis (FIA) with phenol as the substrate (D.L.=4.0 ppm phenol, RSD=2%). Both of these methods are easy to operate, require no extraction (biosensor) or rapid extraction procedure (SPE), and the analysis time is short (min). The results obtained with these two innovative procedures were compared with a classical spectrophotometric assay using Folin–Ciocalteau reagent and HPLC analysis. Other extra-virgin olive oil quality parameters were investigated using classical methods in order to better define the alteration process and results are reported.

Determination of anticholinesterase pesticides in real samples using a disposable biosensor

A choline amperometric biosensor based on screen-printed electrodes was assembled and used to assess the inhibitory effect of organophosphorus and carbamic pesticides on acetylcholinesterase activi ...

Electroanalytical biosensors and their potential for food pathogen and toxin detection

The detection and identification of foodborne pathogens continue to rely on conventional culturing techniques. These are very elaborate, time-consuming, and have to be completed in a microbiology laboratory and are therefore not suitable for on-site monitoring. The need for a more rapid, reliable, specific, and sensitive method of detecting a target analyte, at low cost, is the focus of a great deal of research. Biosensor technology has the potential to speed up the detection, increase specificity and sensitivity, enable high-throughput analysis, and to be used for monitoring of critical control points in food production. This article reviews food pathogen detection methods based on electrochemical biosensors, specifically amperometric, potentiometric, and impedimetric biosensors. The underlying principles and application of these biosensors are discussed with special emphasis on new biorecognition elements, nanomaterials, and lab on a chip technology.

Sensitive detection of pesticides using amperometric sensors based on cobalt phthalocyanine-modified composite electrodes and immobilized cholinesterases

The determination of organophosphate and carbamate pesticides was carried out using cobalt phthalocyanine-modified carbon epoxy composite electrodes coupled with acetylcholinesterase or butyrylcholinesterase. Covalent immobilization of enzymes on Immobilon membranes or nylon nets was examined; the highest sensitivity to inhibitors was found for the nylon net containing low enzyme loading and this was subsequently used for the construction of an amperometric biosensor for pesticides. Analyses were done using acetyl- or butyrylthiocholine as substrates; thiocholine produced by hydrolysis in the enzyme membrane was electrochemically oxidized at +300 mV (vs. Ag/AgCl reference). The decrease of substrate steady-state current caused by the addition of pesticide was used for evaluation. With this approach, 1.5 and 8.4 micrograms l-1 of paraoxon and heptenophos, respectively, can be detected in less than 3 min. These detection limits are similar as those obtained when analyses were performed using free cholinesterase and 10 min incubation with inhibitor.