Validity of a single antibody-based lateral flow immunoassay depending on graphene oxide for highly sensitive determination of E. coli O157:H7 in minced beef and river water.

Considering the health risks of E. coli O157:H7 presence in food and water, an affordable and highly sensitive detection method is crucial. Herein, we report the first use of a single antibody-based fluorescent lateral flow immunoassay (FLFIA) depending on non-radiative energy transfer between graphene oxide and quantum dots for determination of E. coli O157:H7 in beef and river water. FLFIA showed a high sensitivity rate thousand-fold better than the conventional lateral flow (LF). In inoculated minced beef and river water samples, the limits of detection were 178 and 133 CFU g-1 or mL-1, respectively. Besides, it presented a high selectivity in the presence of other possible interfering bacteria. The single antibody approach reduced the assay cost to 60% less than the conventional LF. Alongside, the results could be read by portable LF readers or smartphones. These advantages offer FLFIA as a promising technology for pathogen detection in food and water.

Size-dependent direct electrochemical detection of gold nanoparticles: application in magnetoimmunoassays.

The effect of the AuNPs size, ranging from 5 nm to 80 nm, on the electrochemical response of screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs) used as electrochemical transducers is investigated for the first time. A simple hydrodynamic modelling and calculation at the nanoscale level is applied so as to find the effect of the size of AuNP upon the electrochemical response. The results show that the best electrochemical response for AuNP suspension for the same concentration of total gold is obtained for the 20 nm sized nanoparticles. It is concluded that the Brownian motions avoid a better response for smaller AuNPs that should in fact be related with the best electrochemical signal due to their higher surface area. Finally, the size effect is studied for AuNPs acting as electroactive labels in an immunosensor that employs magnetic beads as platforms of the bioreactions. The best response for the 5 nm AuNPs in this case is due to the fact that in the immunosensing conditions the Brownian motions are minimized because the AuNPs contact with the electrotransducer surface is induced by the immunoreaction and the fast magnetic collection of the nanoparticles used as antibody labels upon application of a magnetic field.

Nanoparticle based enhancement of electrochemical DNA hybridization signal using nanoporous electrodes.

A novel nanoparticle-based enhanced methodology for the detection of ssDNA using nanoporous alumina filter membranes, containing pores of 200 nm in diameter, is reported. The blockage of the pores due to the hybridization is detected by measuring the decrease in the differential pulse voltammetric response of the [Fe(CN)(6)](4-/3-) redox indicator and using screen-printed carbon electrodes as transducing platform. Furthermore, 20 nm gold nanoparticle (AuNPs) tags are used in order to increase the sensitivity of the assay. The enhancement mechanism of DNA detection is due to an additional blocking effect induced by hybridization reaction by bringing AuNPs inside the pores. The developed methodology can be extended to other biosensing systems with interest not only for DNA but also for proteins and cells. The developed nanochannel/nanoparticle biosensing system would have enormous potential in future miniaturized designs adapted to mass production technologies such as screen-printing technology.