Construction and analytical application of a biosensor based on stearic acid-graphite powder modified with sweet potato tissue in organic solvents

Solvent-Induced Lag Phase during the Formation of Lysozyme Amyloid Fibrils Triggered by Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate: Biophysical Experimental and In Silico Study of Solvent Effects

Amyloid aggregates arise from either the partial or complete loss of the native protein structure or the inability of proteins to attain their native conformation. These aggregates have been linked to several diseases, including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and lysozyme amyloidosis. A comprehensive dataset was recently reported, demonstrating the critical role of the protein's surrounding environment in amyloid formation. In this study, we investigated the formation of lysozyme amyloid fibrils induced by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and the effect of solvents in the medium. Experimental data obtained through fluorescence spectroscopy revealed a notable lag phase in amyloid formation when acetone solution was present. This finding suggested that the presence of acetone in the reaction medium created an unfavorable microenvironment for amyloid fibril formation and impeded the organization of the denatured protein into the fibril form. The in silico data provided insights into the molecular mechanism of the interaction between acetone molecules and the lysozyme protofibril, once acetone presented the best experimental results. It was observed that the lysozyme protofibril became highly unstable in the presence of acetone, leading to the complete loss of its β-sheet conformation and resulting in an open structure. Furthermore, the solvation layer of the protofibril in acetone solution was significantly reduced compared to that in other solvents, resulting in fewer hydrogen bonds. Consequently, the presence of acetone facilitated the exposure of the hydrophobic portion of the protofibril, precluding the amyloid fibril formation. In summary, our study underscores the pivotal role the surrounding environment plays in influencing amyloid formation.

Square-wave voltammetric determination of rutin in pharmaceutical formulations using a carbon composite electrode modified with copper (II) phosphate immobilized in polyester resin

A carbon composite electrode modified with copper (II) phosphate immobilized in a polyester resin (Cu3(PO4)2-Poly) for the determination of rutin in pharmaceutical samples by square-wave voltammetry is described herein. The modified electrode allows the determination of rutin at a potential (0.20 V vs. Ag/AgCl (3.0 mol L-1 KCl)) lower than that observed at an unmodified electrode. The peak current was found to be linear to the rutin concentration in the range from 9.9 × 10-8 to 2.5 × 10-6 mol L-1, with a detection limit of 1.2×10-8 mol L-1. The response of the electrode was stable, with no variation in baseline levels within several hours of continuous operation. The surface morphology of the modified electrode was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) system. The results obtained are precise and accurate. In addition, these results are in agreement with those obtained by the chromatographic method at a 95% confidence level.

Organic phase enzyme electrodes

In the development of biosensors, organic phase enzyme electrodes (OPEEs) have received considerable attention for the detection of substrates in organic media. This article reviews different enzymes, transductors and immobilization methods used for the preparation of OPEEs in the last decade.

Effect of dioxane on the structure and hydration–dehydration of α-chymotrypsin as measured by FTIR spectroscopy

A new experimental approach based on FTIR spectroscopic measurements was proposed to study simultaneously the adsorption/desorption of water and organic solvent on solid enzyme and corresponding changes in the enzyme secondary structure in the water activity range from 0 to 1.0 at 25 degrees C. The effect of dioxane on the hydration/dehydration and structure of bovine pancreatic alpha-chymotrypsin (CT) was characterized by means of this approach. Dioxane sorption exhibits pronounced hysteresis. No sorbed dioxane was observed at low water activities (a(w)<0.5) during hydration. At a(w) about 0.5, a sharp increase in the amount of sorbed dioxane was observed. Dioxane sorption isotherm obtained during dehydration resembles a smooth curve. In this case, CT binds about 150 mol dioxane/mol enzyme at the lowest water activities. Three different effects of dioxane on the water binding by the initially dried CT were observed. At a(w)<0.5, water adsorption is similar in the presence and absence of dioxane. It was concluded that the presence of dioxane has little effect on the interaction between enzyme and tightly bound water at low a(w). At a(w)>0.5, dioxane increases the amount of water bound by CT during hydration. This behavior was interpreted as a dioxane-assisted effect on water binding. Upon dehydration at low water activities, dioxane decreases the water content at a given a(w). This behavior suggests that the suppression in the uptake of water during dehydration may be due to a competition for water-binding sites on chymotrypsin by dioxane. Changes in the secondary structure of CT were determined from infrared spectra by analyzing the structure of amide I band. Dioxane induced a strong band at 1628 cm(-1) that was assigned to the intermolecular beta-sheet aggregation. Changes in the intensity of the 1628 cm(-1) band agree well with changes in the dioxane sorption by CT. An explanation of the dioxane effect on the CT hydration and structure was provided on the basis of hypothesis on water-assisted disruption of polar contacts in the solid enzyme. The reported results demonstrate that the hydration and structure of alpha-chymotrypsin depend markedly on how enzyme has been hydrated - whether in the presence or in the absence of organic solvent. A qualitative model was proposed to classify the effect of hydration history on the enzyme activity-a(w) profiles.

Determinação espectrofotométrica por injeção em fluxo de compostos fenólicos em águas residuárias empregando peroxidase de abobrinha (Cucurbita pepo)

Empregou-se nesse trabalho alguns vegetais como fonte de peroxidase. Após a determinação de proteína total, atividade e atividade específica, selecionou-se o extrato bruto da abobrinha (Cucurbita pepo) como fonte dessa enzima para ser empregado em um sistema de análise por injeção em fluxo com detecção espectrofotométrica para a determinação de diversos compostos fenólicos (e.g. fenol, catecol, 2,4-diclorofenol, 4-cloro-3-metilfenol, 4-acetamidofenol, 4-clorofenol, 2,4,6-triclorofenol, o-cresol, m-cresol, p-cresol e hidroquinona). Após a otimização desse sistema em fluxo, o mesmo foi empregado na determinação de compostos fenólicos em águas residuárias de indústrias da região de São Carlos-SP, no intervalo de concentração de 2,0x10-4 a 4,0x10-3 mol L-1, com LD de 8,0x10-5 mol L-1 e freqüência analítica de 58 h-1. A recuperação de fenol em 3 amostras variou de 98,3 a 106, 2% e o RSD foi menor que 1,2% para soluções de fenol nas concentrações de 6,0x10-4 e 8,0x10-4 mol l-1 (n=10).