Evaluation of the enzyme thermistor as a specific detector for chromatographic procedures

Principles of enzyme thermistor systems: applications to biomedical and other measurements

This chapter presents an overview of thermistor-based calorimetric measurements. Bioanalytical applications are emphasized from both the chemical and biomedical points of view. The introductory section elucidates the principles involved in the thermometric measurements. The following section describes in detail the evolution of the various versions of enzyme-thermistor devices. Special emphasis is laid on the description of modern "mini" and "miniaturized" versions of enzyme thermistors. Hybrid devices are also introduced in this section. In the sections on applications, the clinical/biomedical areas are dealt with separately, followed by other applications. Mention is also made of miscellaneous applications. A special section is devoted to future developments, wherein novel concepts of telemedicine and home diagnostics are highlighted. The role of communication and information technology in telemedicine is also mentioned. In the concluding sections, an attempt is made to incorporate the most recent references on specific topics based on enzyme-thermistor systems.

Thermal biosensors in biotechnology

The application of enzyme thermistor devices for the continuous monitoring of enzymatic processes is described. Different hardware concepts are presented and discussed, practical results are also given. These devices were used to analyze the enantiomeric excess in biotransformation processes and for thermal immunoanalysis. In addition, the biosensors were applied for the monitoring and control of an L-ornithine producing process and for the application in hemodialysis monitoring. A review section discusses the use of thermal biosensors for monitoring biotechnological processes in general.

Solid-phase optoelectronic sensors for biochemical analysis

Simple solid-phase optoelectronic sensors for penicillin, urea, and glucose are described. Triphenylmethane dyes such as bromcresol green and bromthymol blue were derivatized with glutathione and co-immobilized with appropriate enzymes to a transparent membrane sandwiched between a red-light-emitting diode and a silicon photodiode with integral amplifier. In the presence of the corresponding substrates, catalytic action in the enzyme-dye membrane perturbs the local pH and causes characteristic color changes in the membrane which are monitored as a rise or fall in the output voltage of the detector system. With enzymes such as penicillinase, urease, and glucose oxidase, the response of the optoelectronic sensors is extremely reproducible over the concentration range 0-10 mM penicillin G, urea, or D-glucose, respectively. This report describes the construction and operation of these simple, inexpensive, and reagentless optoelectronic sensors.