Colorimetric and visual determination of melamine by exploiting the conformational change of hemin G-quadruplex-DNAzyme

Rational design of an allosteric G-quadruplex aptamer probe for ultra-sensitive detection of melamine in milk

Efficient and accurate detection of melamine in dairy products remains a crucial yet challenging task. Herein, an allosterically modulated G-quadruplex-integrated aptamer is rationally designed with thymine-rich recognition termini for melamine binding. The detection process is facile by simply introducing the analyte into the mixture consisting of G-quadruplex aptamer probes, exonuclease III, and thioflavin T (ThT). The detection feasibility is confirmed by the polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and fluorescence measurement results. This exonuclease III-assisted signal amplifiable approach works well in a linear range from 0.1 nM to 0.1 μM. Moreover, a detection limit as low as 83 pM is easily achieved, which is almost five orders of magnitude smaller than the maximum allowable melamine levels (about 8 μM) defined by many countries all over the world. The whole assay time for each test is no longer than 1 h. Additionally, the scheme is highly specific and satisfactory recovery rates (from 91% to 104%) are readily obtained when challenged with melamine-spiked milk samples. Therefore, the label-free, turn-on, low-cost, and time-efficient method can be used for reliable detection of melamine in an easily manipulated and ultra-sensitive manner, which may find its utilization in the field of food safety, biomedical engineering, and clinical diagnosis.

Target-switched triplex nanotweezer and synergic fluorophore translocation for highly selective melamine assay

This paper describes a triplex DNA nanotweezer to specifically capture melamine (MEL). The triplex-forming oligonucleotide (TFO) arm can be switched from the open state to the closed state once MEL binds to the abasic site (AP site) in duplex via the bifacial hydrogen bonding with thymines. Following this nanotweezer operation, the AP site-bound fluorophore is translocated to the terminal triplet to subsequently light up the nanotweezer. The TFO arm is found to be pivotal for permitting the AP site binding. The synergic processes of target competition and fluorophore translocation support a high selectivity for the MEL assay even against the inherent adenosine and the MEL hydrolysis products. Chelerythrine is employed as the fluorescent probe. The detection limit of MEL was estimated to be about 140 nM assuming a signal-to-noise ratio of 3. It was applied to the determination of MEL in spiked milk samples without any separation procedure. Conceivably, this method opens a new avenue towards highly selective triplex-based sensors by making use of other commercially available DNA modifications for recognizing other analytes. Graphical abstract Schematic presentation of a triplex nanotweezer with an open-to-close conversion upon the abasic site binding of melamine. The assay is based on a synergic fluorophore translocation. The corresponding duplex otherwise shows no binding with melamine. Chelerythrine (CHE) with a yellow-green emission peaking at 544 nm is employed as the fluorescent probe.

Label-free electrochemical biosensors based on 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine responsive isoporous silica-micelle membrane

3,3',5,5'-Tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) has been frequently used as an indicator in G-quadruplex/hemin DNAzyme (G4zyme)-based chemical and biochemical analysis, and its oxidation products are usually monitored by electrochemical or optical methods to quantify G4zyme formation-related analytes. Herein we report a simple electrochemical approach based on isoporous silica-micelle membrane (iSMM) to measure TMB, instead of its oxidation products, in G4zyme-based detection of specific analytes. The iSMM was grown on the indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode, which was composed of highly ordered, vertically oriented silica nanochannels and cylindrical micelles of cetyltrimethylammonium. The iSMM-ITO electrode was selectively responsive to neutral TMB but not its oxidation products, thanks to the sieving and pre-concentration capacity of micellar structures in terms of molecular charge and lipophilicity. In other words, only TMB could be extracted and enriched into micelles and subsequently oxidized at the underlying ITO electrode surface (namely the micelle/ITO interface), generating an amplified anodic current. Since the depletion of TMB was catalyzed by G4zymes formed in the presence of specific analyte, the decrease of this anodic current enabled the quantitative detection of this analyte. The current variation relative to its initial value ((j₀-j)/j₀), termed as the current attenuation ratio, showed the obvious dependence on the analyte concentration. As proof-of-concept experiments, four substances, i.e., potassium cation (K⁺), adenosine triphosphate, thrombin and nucleic acid, were detected in aqueous media and the analysis of K⁺ in pre-treated human serum was also performed.

Visual detection of melamine by using a ratiometric fluorescent probe consisting of a red emitting CdTe core and a green emitting CdTe shell coated with a molecularly imprinted polymer

A composite ratiometric fluorescent probe is described for visual detection of melamine (MEL) in milk samples. It is based on the use of red emitting and green emitting CdTe quantum dots, and a mesoporous molecularly imprinted polymer. The red emitting QDs are embedded in the silica microsphere to serve as a core, and the green emitting QDs are coated on the surface of the silica microsphere as a shell. A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) with specific recognition sites for MEL was placed on the shell. If MEL is bound by the MIP, the green fluorescence is quenched due to hydrogen bond interaction. The red emission, in contrast, remains unchanged. Quenching leads to a change in the color of fluorescence from red-green to purely red. This effect allows for visual and instrumental detection of MEL. The mesoporous structure of the MIP reduces the mass transfer resistance and enhances the accessibility of sites for MEL. Response is linear in the 50-1000 ng mL^-1 MEL concentration range, and the limit of detection is 13 ng mL^-1. The fluorescent probe was successfully applied to the analysis of MEL-spiked milk samples and gave recoveries between 94.1 and 98.7%, with 3.6-5.1% relative standard deviations. Graphical abstract Schematic of the preparation and detection of the composite probe. The probe was applied for the selective recognition and visual detection of melamine (MEL).

Convenient and sensitive colorimetric detection of melamine in dairy products based on Cu(ii)-H2O2-3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine system

The illegal adulteration of melamine in dairy products for false protein content increase is a strong hazard to human health. Herein, a simple and sensitive colorimetric method was developed for the quantification of melamine in dairy products based on a Cu²⁺-hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)-3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) system. In this strategy, Cu²⁺ exhibits peroxidase-like activity and can catalyze the oxidation of TMB to oxidized TMB (oxTMB) in the presence of H₂O₂ with a blue colour change of the solution. However, the presence of melamine quickly interacts with H₂O₂ leading to the consumption of H₂O₂ and thus strongly hinders the oxidation of TMB. Under the optimal conditions, the absorbance change of oxTMB has a linear response to the concentration of melamine from 1 to 100 μM with a detection limit of 0.5 μM for melamine. The proposed method has many merits including more simplicity, good selectivity, and more cost-effectiveness without using any nanomaterials. The method was further successfully applied to detect melamine in dairy products including milk and infant formula powder.

Convenient and sensitive colorimetric detection of melamine in dairy products based on a Cu(ii)-H₂O₂-3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine system was reported.

An ultrasensitive conformation-dependent colorimetric probe for the detection of mercury(II) using exonuclease III-assisted target recycling and gold nanoparticles

An ultrasensitive conformation-dependent colorimetric assay has been developed for the detection of mercury(II) ions. It is based on the use of exonuclease III (Exo III)-assisted target recycling and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). In the absence of Hg(II), the hairpin-shaped DNA probe (H-DNA) binds to AuNPs and stabilizes them in solutions of high ionic strength. In the presence of Hg(II), on the other hand, the sticky termini of the H-DNA form a rigid DNA duplex stem with a blunt 3'-terminus. Thus, Exo III is activated as a biocatalyst for selective and stepwise removal of mononucleotides from the 3'-terminus of the H-DNA. As a result, Hg(II) is released from the T-Hg(II)-T complexes. The guanine-rich sequences released from the H-DNA are then self-assembled with potassium ion to form a stable G-quadruplex conformation. In solutions of high ionic strength, this results in aggregation of AuNPs and a color change from red to blue which can be seen with bare eyes. The method is highly sensitive and selective. It has a linear response in the 10 pM to 100 nM Hg(II) concentration range, and the detection limit is as low as 3.2 pM (at an S/N ratio of 3). The relative standard deviation at a level of 0.5 nM of Hg(II) is 4.9% (for n = 10). The method was applied to the detection of Hg(II) in spiked environment water samples, with recoveries ranging from 92% to 106%. Graphical abstract A conformation-dependent colorimetric system was fabricated for label-free detection of mercury(II) by utilizing exonuclease III(Exo III)-assisted target recycling and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs).