Wolfgang Kreiss

Bioactivity screening by chromatography-bioluminescence coupling

SummaryBecause luminescent microorganisms change their light emission in the presence of bioactive substances, they provide an effective way of monitoring toxicity. Here we report the direct coupling of bioluminescence to chromatography which is capable of detecting single toxic components in complex mixtures. Two approaches were investigated, utilizing thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The TLC-bioluminescence imaging technique was developed into a versatile and rugged method and proved to be superior to the HPLC-based design. Employing genetically engineered luminescent bacteria gives customized selectivity of bioactivity detection. The combination of analytical separation technology with the biospecific sensing ability of living cells provides a novel screening tool for targeting bioactive components in complex samples.