Label-Free Biosensor Detection of Endocrine Disrupting Compounds Using Engineered Estrogen Receptors

Chemicals such as Endocrine Disrupting Compounds (EDCs) have shown to interfere with endogenous hormone systems affecting the endocrine, immune and nervous systems of animals, causing many problems including reproductive disorders and cancers. This highlights the urgency for developing fast and sensitive measurements to detect and monitor EDCs, which are detrimental even at very low concentration. This task is challenging since their low molecular weight (typically < 500 Da), complicates the use of classical label free detection techniques. In this work, we show that using rationally designed Estrogen Receptor alpha (as bio-recognition element) together with conformation-sensitive peptides (as amplification agent) allowed detecting 17β-estradiol at 20 ng/L, similar to the concentration value found in real water samples. Furthermore, the combination of wild type ER and selected ER mutants are used to differentially detect and discriminate the presence of agonists (such as 17β-estradiol) and antagonist compounds (such as Tamoxifen) of the ERα in a single experiment. Since 17β-estradiol has been placed in the watch list of substances to be monitored in European Union waters, these results can have a direct impact on the implementation of legislation.

LA SPINA Rita;  FERRERO Valentina;  AIELLO Venera;  PEDOTTI Mattia;  VARANI Luca;  LETTIERI Teresa;  CALZOLAI Luigi;  HAASNOOT Willem;  COLPO Pascal; 

2018-01-12

MULTIDISCIPLINARY DIGITAL PUBLISHING INSTITUTE (MDPI)

JRC95981

2079-6374,   

http://www.mdpi.com/2079-6374/8/1/1,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC95981,   

10.3390/bios8010001,