V. G. Grigorenko

Mediatorless biosensor for H2O2 based on recombinant forms of horseradish peroxidase directly adsorbed on polycrystalline gold

Four forms of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) have been used to prepare peroxidase-modified gold electrodes for mediatorless detection of peroxide: native HRP, wild type recombinant HRP, and two recombinant forms containing six-His tag at the C-terminus and at the N-terminus, respectively. The adsorption of the enzyme molecules on gold was studied by direct mass measurements with electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance. All the forms of HRP formed a monolayer coverage of the enzyme on the gold surface. However, only gold electrodes with adsorbed recombinant HRP forms exhibited high and stable current response to H(2)O(2) due to its bioelectrocatalytic reduction based on direct electron transfer between gold and HRP. The sensitivity of the gold electrodes modified with recombinant HRPs was in the range of 1.4-1.5 A M(-1) cm(-2) at -50 mV versus Agmid R:AgCl. The response to H(2)O(2) in the concentration range 0.1-40 microM was not dependent on the presence of a mediator (i.e. catechol) giving strong evidence that the electrode currents are diffusion limited. Lower detection limit for H(2)O(2) detection was 10 nM at the electrodes modified with recombinant HRPs.

Direct heterogeneous electron transfer of recombinant horseradish peroxidases on gold

Clean polycrystalline gold electrodes were modified with native glycosylated horseradish peroxidases (HRP) or two different recombinant (carbohydrate free) HRPs; recombinant wild-type HRP (rec-HRP) and recombinant HRP containing a six histidine-tag at the C-terminus of the polypeptide chain (rec-HRP-His), respectively. Only the electrodes modified with the recombinant HRPs exhibited high current responses to H2O2 due to relatively rapid direct electron transfer (ET) between recombinant HRP and gold. The absence of a carbohydrate shell on rec-HRP and the additionally existing histidine-tag on rec-HRP-His improved the electrode sensitivity to H2O2 by more than 100 times if compared with the response observed at gold modified with native HRP. Rotating disk electrode experiments indicated that the heterogeneous electron transfer rates are equal to 4.7 and 7.5 s-1 for direct electron transfer between the gold electrode and rec-HRP or rec-HRP-His, respectively.

Direct electron transfer in the system gold electrode–recombinant horseradish peroxidases

The kinetics of the bioelectrocatalytic reduction of hydrogen peroxide has been studied at gold electrodes modified with different forms of horseradish peroxidase (HRP). Native HRP, wild type recombinant HRP (rec-HRP) and its two mutant forms containing a six-histidine tag at the C- or N-terminus, CHisrec-HRP and NHisrec-HRP, respectively, have been used for an adsorptive modification of the gold electrodes. The histidine sequences, i.e. histidine tags, were introduced into the peroxidase structure by genetic engineering of non-glycosylated rec-HRP using an Escherichia coli expression system. Experiments with a gold rotating disc electrode demonstrated that electrodes with the adsorbed rec-HRP forms exhibited high and stable current response to H2O2 due to its bioelectrocatalytic reduction based on direct (mediatorless) ET between gold and the active site of HRP. The heterogeneous ET rate constants were evaluated to be in the order of 20 or 33 s − 1 between rec-HRP or its histidine mutants and gold, respectively, in 0.01 M phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) containing 0.15 M NaCl. The increase in the heterogeneous ET rate found for CHisrec-HRP and NHisrec-HRP is probably due to the interaction of the histidine tag with the electrode surface. The kinetic data demonstrate that new possibilities for enhancing the catalytic activity of the enzyme at the electrode solution interface can be achieved by genetic engineering design of the enzyme molecules.

New Approaches for Functional Expression of Recombinant Horseradish Peroxidase C In Escherichia Coli

Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) is an important enzyme in bio- and immunochemical analysis. In a first approach we expressed HRP with a C-terminal histidine tag in the Escherichia coli (E. coli) periplasm. On the one hand this led to functionally active HRP-His at a low yield of 0.5mg/l of culture medium. On the other hand the affinity tag introduced allowed for optimization of the downstream processing of HRP-His refolded from inclusion bodies, thereby increasing the yield of homogeneous enzyme to 8-10mg/l of E. coli culture medium when expressed conventionally in E. coli cytosol as the second approach. The final refolding/reconstitution protocol includes crucial gel filtration steps to remove constituents of the refolding medium and, in particular, imidazole from the active site of HRP-His, resulting in spectral (Soret band maximum of 403 nm) and catalytic properties of the refolded HRP-His (1160U/mg with 2, 2′-Azino-bis[3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate] as substrate) indistinguishable from those of the p...

Biosensor based on a silicon nanowire field-effect transistor functionalized by gold nanoparticles for the highly sensitive determination of prostate specific antigen

We have demonstrated label-free and real-time detection of prostate specific antigen (PSA) in human serum using silicon nanowire field effect transistors (NW FETs) with Schottky contacts (Si-Ti). The NW FETs were fabricated from SOI material using high-resolution e-beam lithography, thin film vacuum deposition and reactive-ion etching processes eliminating complicated processes of doping and thermal annealing. This allowed substantial simplifying the transistors manufacturing. A new method for covalent immobilization of half-fragments of antibodies on silicon modified by 3-glycidopropyltrimethoxysilane with thiol groups and 5nm gold nanoparticles (GNPs) was established. NW FETs functionalized by GNPs revealed extremely high pH sensitivity of 70mV/pH and enhanced electrical performance in the detection of antigen due to enhanced surface/volume ratio, favorable orientation of antibody active sites and approaching the source of the electric field close to the transistor surface. Si NWFETs were applied for quantitative detection of PSA in a buffer and human serum diluted 1/100. Response time was about 5-10s, and analysis time per sample was 1min. The limit of PSA detection was of 23fg/mL, concentration range of 23fg/mL-500ng/mL (7 orders of magnitude). The PSA concentrations determined by the NW FETs in serum were compared with well-established ELISA method. The results matched well with the correlation coefficient of 0.97.

High-sensitivity express immunochromatographic method for detection of plant infection by tobacco mosaic virus

A highly sensitive express immunochromatography method for molecular diagnosis of plant virus infections was elaborated on the example of a model object — tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). The analysis time does not exceed 5 min, and the lower limit of TMV detection in non-clarified leaf extract (2–4 ng/ml) is comparable with the sensitivity of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay of the virus. A single measurement requires 0.1–0.2 ml tested solution (extract from 10–20 mg of leaf material). The sensitivity of TMV determination in the leaf tissue extract was increased by more than one order of magnitude using signal enhancement by silver and is 0.1 ng/ml. In this case, analysis time did not exceed 25 min. The simplicity of this method makes it especially convenient in express diagnosis of numerous analyzed specimens. The prototype of a diagnostic kit for serial analyses of plant viral infections both in laboratory and field conditions was elaborated.

P-Chip and P-Chip Bienzyme Electrodes Based on Recombinant Forms of Horseradish Peroxidase Immobilized on Gold Electrodes

Adsorption and bioelectrocatalytic activity of native horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and its recombinant forms on polycrystalline gold electrodes were studied. Recombinant forms of HRP were produced by a genetic engineering approach using an E. coli expression system. According to direct mass measurements with a quartz crystal microbalance, all the forms of HRP formed monolayer coverage of the enzyme on the gold surface. However, only gold electrodes modified with the recombinant HRP forms (non-glycosylated) exhibited high and stable current response to H2O2 due to its bioelectrocatalytic reduction based on direct electron transfer (ET) between gold and the active site of the enzyme. Introduction of a six-His tag either at the C-terminus or at the N-terminus of the enzyme molecule additionally increased the strength of the enzyme binding with the gold surface and the efficiency of direct ET. Immobilization of recombinant forms of HRP containing histidine functional groups on the surface of the gold electrode was used both for the development of a P-chip, a biosensor for hydrogen peroxide determination based on direct ET, and for the development of a bienzyme biosensor electrode for the determination of L-lysine based on co-immobilized recombinant forms of HRP and L-lysine-α-oxidase.

Lateral Flow Immunoassay for Progesterone Detection

A new express method based on lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for progesterone detection was developed. To increase the assay sensitivity an enzyme label (horse-radish peroxidase) was used instead of colloidal gold. An optimal assay format was chosen and the influence of a range of buffer supplements (detergents, proteins and sucrose) was investigated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Linear range of LFIA was between 2 and 40 ng/mL in buffer. Limit of detection was 2 ng/mL, assay time was within 15 min.

Quantitative Lateral Flow Immunoassay for Total Prostate Specific Antigen in Serum

ABSTRACT A simple method for the rapid determination of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in serum is reported using a lateral flow immunoassay with gold nanoparticles as the label. The method uses the intensity of colored test lines to determine PSA from 0.3 to 30 ng/mL. The limit of detection was 0.3 ng/mL and the coefficient of variation was less than 10%. The analysis time was approximately 20 min. The novel method showed good correlation with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) measurements of prostate-specific antigen concentration in human serum with a linear regression coefficient of 0.985. The developed system was stable for at least 12 months when stored from +4 to 30°C and has potential application for clinical practice.

Recombinant horseradish peroxidase: production and analytical applications.

Horseradish peroxidase is a key enzyme in bio- and immunochemical analysis. New approaches in functional expression of the peroxidase gene in E. coli cells and the subsequent refolding of the resulting protein yield a recombinant enzyme that is comparable in its spectral and catalytic characteristics to the native plant peroxidase. Genetic engineering approaches allow production of recombinant peroxidase conjugates with both protein antigens and Fab antibody fragments. The present article reviews the use of recombinant horseradish peroxidase as the marker enzyme in ELISA procedures as well as in amperometric sensors based on direct electron transfer.