Immunoassays enzyme

Enzyme immunoassays using enzymes as markers have a number of advantages. Detection limits for enzymes are very low, because enzyme reactions can be amplified as catalytic reactions. The enzyme-labeled antigen and antibody are considerably stable. No expensive equipment is required to determine the enzyme activity. 

Since the first report on enzyme immunoassay appeared in 1971 (E5, V2) relevant techniques have been developed and applications are increasing. There are many reports on new coupling agents for preparing conjugates of 

Enzyme-labeled antigen Antigen.antibody Enzyme reaction 

Enzyme inhibitor-antigen conji ite + antibody + eiuyme 

The EMMIA system was developed by Ngo and Lenhoff (N3, N4). In this assay, enzyme activity is modulated by an enzyme modulator which is coupled to antigen (free form) but not by the complex of enzyme modulator-antigen and antibody (bound form). As shown in Fig. 2 and Table 6, in an enzyme inhibitor immunoassay, an enzyme inhibitor is used as a negative modulator. For example, the reaction mixture for measuring thyroxine consists of acetylcholine inhibitor-thyroxine conjugate [I-Ag], acetylcholinesterase [E], unlabeled thyroxine [Ag], and antithyroxine antibody [Ab]. When the amount of unlabeled thyroxine, which binds to antibody [Ab Ag], is increased, the free form of acetylcholine inhibitor-thyroxine conjugate [I-Ag] increases, and the enzyme activity decreases. Therefore, the enzyme activity is inversely proportional to the concentration of unlabeled thyroxine. A tetrazyme kit (Abbott) is now available for measuring thyroxine. 

Prior to the application, the antiserum is tested for its specificity against all proteins present in the food to be analyzed. As far as possible all un- 

Soya protein in meat products Myosin in muscle meat Cereal proteins as well as papain in beer Gliadins (absence of gluten in foods) 

Veterinary drugs and fattening aids, e. g. penicillin in milk, natural or synthetic estrogens in meat Toxins (aflatoxins, enterotoxins, ochratoxins) in food 

Pesticides (atrazine, aldicarb, carbofuran) Glycoalkaloids in potatoes 

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Enzyme catalysis Enzyme electrode Enzyme immobilization Enzyme immunoassay Enzyme inhibitors... 

Ref. 277 unless otherwise noted gc = gas chromatography hplc = high pressure Hquid chromatography ir = infrared spectroscopy uv = ultraviolet spectroscopy glc = ga sliquid chromatography eia = enzyme immunoassay vis = visible spectroscopy. 

Enzyme Immunoassay. In EIA, antibody (or antigen) is labeled with (or conjugated to) an enzyme, and this reagent is used to complex and quantify the target antigen (or antibody) in a sample. Conjugation may utilize a variety of chemical methods. 

Most immunoassay kits and many commercial immunoassay analyzers are based on heterogenous EIA or FIA. These include an immunoassay system that uses FIA linked to radial partition chromatography of the antibody—antigen complex (39) a system that uses antibody-coated tubes for enzyme immunoassay of a variety of hormones and dmgs (40) and a system that uses either a sandwich or competitive FIA format to measure a variety of analytes (41). 

P. A. Cunniff, ed.. Official Methods of Analysis of AO AC International, 16th ed., Vols. I and II, AO AC International, Arlington, Va., 1995. Vol. I includes Pesticide Formulations and Pesticide Residues. Over 2100 coUabotatively tested, approved methods for chemical and microbiological analyses, with 149 new methods, 103 revised/updated methods, methods using anibody-based test kits, enzyme immunoassay, and annual supplements containing new and revised methods chemical and common names of all dmgs and pesticides easy-to-locate references. 

Enzyme Immunosensors. Enzyme immunosensors are enzyme immunoassays coupled with electrochemical sensors. These sensors (qv) require multiple steps for analyte determination, and either sandwich assays or competitive binding assays maybe used. Both of these assays use antibodies for the analyte of interest attached to a membrane on the surface of an electrochemical sensor. In the sandwich assay type, the membrane-bound antibody binds the sample antigen, which in turn binds another antibody that is enzyme-labeled. This immunosensor is then placed in a solution containing the substrate for the labeling enzyme and the rate of product formation is measured electrochemically. The rate of the reaction is proportional to the amount of bound enzyme and thus to the amount of the analyte antigen. The sandwich assay can be used only with antigens capable of binding two different antibodies simultaneously (53). 

Instead of immobilizing the antibody onto the transducer, it is possible to use a bare (amperometric or potentiometric) electrode for probing enzyme immunoassay reactions (42). In this case, the content of the immunoassay reaction vessel is injected to an appropriate flow system containing an electrochemical detector, or the electrode can be inserted into the reaction vessel. Remarkably low (femtomolar) detection limits have been reported in connection with the use of the alkaline phosphatase label (43,44). This enzyme catalyzes the hydrolysis of phosphate esters to liberate easily oxidizable phenolic products. 

Example 6-2 The following standard addition plot was obtained for a competitive electrochemical enzyme immunoassay of the pesticide 2,4-D. A ground water sample (diluted 1 20 was subsequently assayed by the same protocol to yield a current signal of 65 nA. Calculate the concentration of 2,4-D in the original sample. 

Electroosmotic flow, 195 End column detection, 89 Energy barrier, 16 Enzyme electrodes, 172, 174 Enzyme immunoassays, 185 Enzyme inhibition, 181 Enzyme reconstitution, 178 Enzyme wiring, 178 Equilibrium potential, 15 Ethanol electrodes, 87, 178 Exchange current, 14... 

GC = gas chromatography ECD = electron capture detector EIA = enzyme-immunoassay GPC = gel permeation chromatography HPLC = high-performance liquid chromatography ITMS = ion trap mass spectrometer LSE = liquid solid extraction MS = mass spectrometry RSD = relative standard deviation SPE = solid phase extraction... 

An enzyme immunoassay technique has been employed for measuring endosulfan and its degradation products (i.e., endosulfan diol, endosulfan sulfate, endosulfan ether, and endosulfan lactone) in water at 3 ppb (Chau and Terry 1972 Musial et al. 1976). However, this technique is not currently in use in environmental residue analysis. Further research into this technique could produce a rapid, rehable, and sensitive method for identifying contaminated areas posing a risk to human health. No additional methods for detecting endosulfan in environmental media appear to be necessary at this time. However, methods for the determination of endosulfan degradation products are needed. 

Dreher RM, Podratzki B. 1988. Development of an enzyme-immunoassay for endosulfan and its degradahon products. J Agric Food Chem 36 1072-1075. 

Assays of ciguatoxin. Determination of ciguatoxin levels in fish was carried out in many laboratories by mouse assays. Enzyme immunoassay to screen inedible fish has been proposed by Hokama (9). No specific chemical assay has been developed, as information on functional groups suitable for fluorescence labeling is not available. Analyses conducted in the authors laboratory on remnant fish retrieved from patients meals indicated that ciguatoxin content as low level as 1 ppb could cause intoxication in adults. An extremely high sensitivity and a sophisticated pretreatment method will be required for designing a fluorometric determination method for the toxin. 

Conventional ion-selective electrodes have been used as detectors for immunoassays. Antibody binding measurements can be made with hapten-selective electrodes such as the trimethylphenylammonium ion electrode Enzyme immunoassays in which the enzyme label catalyzes the production of a product that is detected by an ion-selective or gas-sensing electrode take advantage of the amplification effect of enzyme catalysis in order to reach lower detection limits. Systems for hepatitis B surface antigen and estradiol use horseradish peroxidase as the enzyme label and... 

Because of this lack of resolving power, much electroanalytical research is aimed at providing increased selectivity. This can be accomplished in two ways. First, electrochemistry can be combined with another technique which provides the selectivity. Examples of this approach are liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (LCEC) and electrochemical enzyme immunoassay (EEIA). The other approach is to modify the electrochemical reaction at the electrode to enhance selectivity. This... 

Several heterogeneous electrochemical enzyme immunoassays have been demonstrated. These are based on the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique... 

Fig. 13. General protocol for heterogeneous enzyme immunoassay preparation of reagent cuvettes by coating Ab, competitive assay format, and sandwich assay format. (Reprinted with permission from W. R. Heineman and H. B. Halsall, Anal. Chem, 1985, 57, 1321A. Copyright 1985, American Chemical Society)...

A competitive electrochemical enzyme immunoassay has been demonstrated for digoxin Alkaline phosphatase, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of phenyl phosphate... 

Catalase has also been used as an enzyme label in competitive heterogeneous enzyme immunoassays. Catalase generates oxygen from hydrogen peroxide with the oxygen determined amperometrically with an oxygen electrode. This approach has been demonstrated for a-fetoprotein theophylline and human serum albumin... 

A sandwich electrochemical enzyme immunoassay has been described for IgG Alkaline phosphatase was again used as the enzyme label with the conversion of phenyl phosphate to phenol being determined electrochemically by LCEC. A detection limit of 10 pg/mL was reported. 

Homogeneous electrochemical enzyme immunoassays for both phenytoin and digoxin have been developed. In both cases the label was glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, which catalyzes the reduction of NAD to NADH. The NADH produced was detected by LCEC at a carbon paste electrode. 

A homogeneous electrochemical enzyme immunoassay for 2,4-dinitrophenol-aminocaproic acid (DNP-ACA), has been developed based on antibody inhibition of enzyme conversion from the apo- to the holo- form Apoglucose oxidase was used as the enzyme label. This enzyme is inactive until binding of flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) to form the holoenzyme which is active. Hydrogen peroxide is the enzymatic product which is detected electrochemically. Because antibody bound apoenzyme cannot bind FAD, the production of HjOj is a measure of the concentration of free DNP-ACA in the sample. 

Sulfonylureas are not directly amenable to gas chromatography (GC) because of their extremely low volatility and thermal instability. GC has been used in conjunction with diazomethane derivatization, pentafluorobenzyl bromide derivatization, and hydrolysis followed by analysis of the aryl sulfonamides. These approaches have not become widely accepted, owing to poor performance for the entire family of sulfonylureas. Capillary electrophoresis (CE) has been evaluated for water analysis and soil analysis. The low injection volumes required in CE may not yield the required sensitivity for certain applications. Enzyme immunoassay has been reported for chlorsulfuron and triasulfuron, with a limit of detection (LOD) ranging from 20 to 100 ng kg (ppt) in soil and water. 

P. Tijssen, Practice and Theory of Enzyme Immunoassays, Elsevier, Amsterdam (1985). 

Using a simple solvent extraction procedure to minimize matrix effects, a diclofop-methyl immunoassay was developed for milk, a number of edible plant products, and other matrices. Gas chromatography (GC) and liquid scintillation counting (LSC) of a C-labeled analyte were used as reference methods to compare with enzyme immunoassay (EIA) results. The methods were well correlated, with comparison of EIA... 

S.S. Deshpande (ed.), Enzyme Immunoassays from Concept to Product, Chapman HaU, New York (1996). 

J.W. King and K.S. Nam, Coupling enzyme immunoassay with supercritical fluid extraction, in Immunoassays for Residue Analysis, ed. R.C. Beier and L.H. Stanker, American Chemical Society, Washington, DC, Chapter 34, pp. 422-438 (1996). 

Figure 1 Schematic of an enzyme immunoassay. (1, 2) The test solution and enzyme conjugate are added to a tube or well pre-coated with anti-anal) e antibodies. (3) After the inhibition step, the solid phase is washed, and only antibody-bound material is retained. (4A-C) Colorless substrate is added and is converted to a visible color in inverse proportion to the amount of analyte in the sample...

Figure 2 Typical enzyme immunoassay calibration curve illustrating the inversely proportional dose-response relationship...

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