Immobilization Method to Preserve Enzyme Specificity in Biosensors: Consequences for Brain Glutamate Detection

Methods of Protection of Electrochemical Sensors against Biofouling in Cell Culture Applications

In this work, we evaluated more than 10 antifouling layers presenting different modes of action for application in electrochemical sensors. These layers included porous materials, permselective membranes, hydrogels, silicate sol-gels, proteins, and sp3 hybridized carbon. To evaluate the protective effects of the antifouling modification as well as its impact on the catalyst, we adsorbed a redox mediator on the electrode surface. Five of the tested coatings allowed us to preserve the electrochemical properties of the tested mediator. Later studies showed that sol-gel silicate layer, poly-l-lactic acid, and poly(l-lysine)-g-poly(ethylene glycol) were the only ones capable of sustaining the catalyst's performance during prolonged incubation in a cell culture medium. The highest signal deterioration was observed, as expected during the first few hours of incubation in a cell culture environment. Tested layers exhibited different dynamics of the protective effect. The poly-l-lactic acid layer presented lower changes in the first hours of the study but suffered complete signal deterioration after 72 h. Whereas the signal intensity of the silicate layer was lowered by half after just 3 h but was still visible after 6 weeks of constant incubation of the electrode in the cell culture.

Enzyme Cascade Electrode Reactions with Nanomaterials and Their Applicability towards Biosensor and Biofuel Cells

Nanomaterials, including carbon nanotubes, graphene oxide, metal-organic frameworks, metal nanoparticles, and porous carbon, play a crucial role as efficient carriers to enhance enzyme activity through substrate channeling while improving enzyme stability and reusability. However, there are significant debates surrounding aspects such as enzyme orientation, enzyme loading, retention of enzyme activity, and immobilization techniques. Consequently, these subjects have become the focus of intensive research in the realm of multi-enzyme cascade reactions. Researchers have undertaken the challenge of creating functional in vitro multi-enzyme systems, drawing inspiration from natural multi-enzyme processes within living organisms. Substantial progress has been achieved in designing multi-step reactions that harness the synthetic capabilities of various enzymes, particularly in applications such as biomarker detection (e.g., biosensors) and the development of biofuel cells. This review provides an overview of recent developments in concurrent and sequential approaches involving two or more enzymes in sequence. It delves into the intricacies of multi-enzyme cascade reactions conducted on nanostructured electrodes, addressing both the challenges encountered and the innovative solutions devised in this field.

Enzyme-based electrochemical biosensor for antimonite detection in water

Antimonite (Sb^III) is a naturally occurring contaminant demanding on-site ultrasensitive detection. The enzyme-based electrochemical (EC) biosensors are promising, but the lack of specific Sb^III oxidizing enzymes hindered the past efforts. Herein, we modulated the specificity of arsenite oxidase AioAB toward Sb^III by regulating its spatial conformation from tight to loose using the metal-organic framework ZIF-8. The constructed EC biosensor, AioAB@ZIF-8, exhibited the substrate specificity toward Sb^III at 12.8 s^-1 μM^-1, an order of magnitude higher than that of As^III (1.1 s^-1 μM^-1). Relaxing AioAB structure in ZIF-8 was evidenced by the break of the S-S bond and the conversion of α helix to the random coil as suggested by Raman spectroscopy. Our AioAB@ZIF-8 EC sensor exhibited a dynamic linear range in 0.041-4.1 μM at a response time of 5 s, and the detection limit at 0.041 μM at a high sensitivity of 1894 nA μM^-1. The insights into tuning the specificity of an enzyme shed new light on biosensing metal(loid)s without specific proteins.

A disposable enzymatic biofuel cell for glucose sensing via short-circuit current

It is essential to construct a biofuel cell-based sensor and develop an effective strategy to detect glucose without any potentiostat circuitry in order to create a simple and miniaturized device. In this report, an enzymatic biofuel cell (EBFC) is fabricated by the facile design of an anode and cathode on a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE). To construct the anode, thionine and flavin adenine dinucleotide-dependent glucose dehydrogenase (FAD-GDH) are covalently immobilized via a crosslinker to make a cross-linked redox network. As a cathode, the Pt-free oxygen reduction carbon catalyst is employed alternative to the commonly used bilirubin oxidase. We proposed the importance of EBFC-based sensors through the connection of anode and cathode; they can identify a short-circuit current by means of applied zero external voltage, thereby capable of glucose detection without under the operation of the potentiostat. The result shows that the EBFC-based sensor could be able to detect based on a short-circuit current with a wide range of glucose concentrations from 0.28 to 30 mM. Further, an EBFC is employed as a one-compartment model energy harvester with a maximum power density of (36 ± 3) μW cm^{- 2} in sample volume 5 μL. In addition, the constructed EBFC-based sensor demonstrates that the physiological range of ascorbic acid and uric acid shows no significant effect on the short-circuit current generation. Moreover, this EBFC can be used as a sensor in artificial plasma without losing its performance and thereby used as a disposable test strip in real blood sample analysis.

Malignant astrocyte swelling and impaired glutamate clearance drive the expansion of injurious spreading depolarization foci

Spreading depolarizations (SDs) indicate injury progression and predict worse clinical outcome in acute brain injury. We demonstrate in rodents that acute brain swelling upon cerebral ischemia impairs astroglial glutamate clearance and increases the tissue area invaded by SD. The cytotoxic extracellular glutamate accumulation (>15 µM) predisposes an extensive bulk of tissue (4-5 mm²) for a yet undescribed simultaneous depolarization (SiD). We confirm in rat brain slices exposed to osmotic stress that SiD is the pathological expansion of prior punctual SD foci (0.5-1 mm²), is associated with astrocyte swelling, and triggers oncotic neuron death. The blockade of astrocytic aquaporin-4 channels and Na⁺/K⁺/Cl^- co-transporters, or volume-regulated anion channels mitigated slice edema, extracellular glutamate accumulation (<10 µM) and SiD occurrence. Reversal of slice swelling by hyperosmotic mannitol counteracted glutamate accumulation and prevented SiD. In contrast, inhibition of glial metabolism or inhibition of astrocyte glutamate transporters reproduced the SiD phenotype. Finally, we show in the rodent water intoxication model of cytotoxic edema that astrocyte swelling and altered astrocyte calcium waves are central in the evolution of SiD. We discuss our results in the light of evidence for SiD in the human cortex. Our results emphasize the need of preventive osmotherapy in acute brain injury.

Neurotransmitter Release of Reprogrammed Cells Using Electrochemical Detection Methods

The detection of neurotransmitter release from reprogrammed human cell is an important demonstration of their functionality. Electrochemistry has the distinct advantages over alternative methods that it allows for the measuring of the analyte of interest at a high temporal resolution. This is necessary for fast events, such as neurotransmitter release and reuptake, which happen in the order of milliseconds to seconds. The precise description of these kinetic events can lead to insights into the function of cells in health and disease and allows for the exploration of events that might be missed using methods that look at absolute concentration values or methods that have a slower sampling rate. In the present chapter, we describe the use of constant potential amperometry and enzyme-coated multielectrode arrays for the detection of glutamate in vitro. These biosensors have the distinct advantage of "self-referencing," a method providing high selectivity while retaining outstanding temporal resolution. Here, we provide a step-by-step user guide for a commercially available system and its application for in vitro systems such as reprogrammed cells.

A selected review of recent advances in the study of neuronal circuits using fiber photometry

To understand the correlation between animal behaviors and the underlying neuronal circuits, it is important to monitor and record neurotransmission in the brain of freely moving animals. With the development of fiber photometry, based on genetically encoded biosensors, and novel electrochemical biosensors, it is possible to measure some key neuronal transmission events specific to cell types or neurotransmitters of interest with high temporospatial resolution. This review discusses the recent advances and achievements of these two techniques in the study of neurotransmission in animal models and how they can be used to complement other techniques in the neuroscientist's toolbox.

"Nano": An Emerging Avenue in Electrochemical Detection of Neurotransmitters

The growing importance of nanomaterials toward the detection of neurotransmitter molecules has been chronicled in this review. Neurotransmitters (NTs) are chemicals that serve as messengers in synaptic transmission and are key players in brain functions. Abnormal levels of NTs are associated with numerous psychotic and neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, their sensitive and robust detection is of great significance in clinical diagnostics. For more than three decades, electrochemical sensors have made a mark toward clinical detection of NTs. The superiority of these electrochemical sensors lies in their ability to enable sensitive, simple, rapid, and selective determination of analyte molecules while remaining relatively inexpensive. Additionally, these sensors are capable of being integrated in robust, portable, and miniaturized devices to establish point-of-care diagnostic platforms. Nanomaterials have emerged as promising materials with significant implications for electrochemical sensing due to their inherent capability to achieve high surface coverage, superior sensitivity, and rapid response in addition to simple device architecture and miniaturization. Considering the enormous significance of the levels of NTs in biological systems and the advances in sensing ushered in with the integration of nanotechnology in electrochemistry, the analysis of NTs by employing nanomaterials as interface materials in various matrices has emerged as an active area of research. This review explores the advancements made in the field of electrochemical sensors for the sensitive and selective determination of NTs which have been described in the past two decades with a distinctive focus on extremely innovative attributes introduced by nanotechnology.

Real-time neurochemical measurement of dynamic metabolic events during cardiac arrest and resuscitation in a porcine model

This work describes a fully-integrated portable microfluidic analysis system for real-time monitoring of dynamic changes in glucose and lactate occurring in the brain as a result of cardiac arrest and resuscitation.

In Vivo Electrochemical Sensors for Neurochemicals: Recent Update

In vivo electrochemical sensing based on implantable microelectrodes is a strong driving force of analytical neurochemistry in brain. The complex and dynamic neurochemical network sets stringent standards of in vivo electrochemical sensors including high spatiotemporal resolution, selectivity, sensitivity, and minimized disturbance on brain function. Although advanced materials and novel technologies have promoted the development of in vivo electrochemical sensors drastically, gaps with the goals still exist. This Review mainly focuses on recent attempts on the key issues of in vivo electrochemical sensors including selectivity, tissue response and sensing reliability, and compatibility with electrophysiological techniques. In vivo electrochemical methods with bare carbon fiber electrodes, of which the selectivity is achieved either with electrochemical techniques such as fast-scan cyclic voltammetry and differential pulse voltammetry or based on the physiological nature will not be reviewed. Following the elaboration of each issue involved in in vivo electrochemical sensors, possible solutions supported by the latest methodological progress will be discussed, aiming to provide inspiring and practical instructions for future research.

Carbon nanohorn modified platinum electrodes for improved immobilisation of enzyme in the design of glutamate biosensors

Electrochemical enzymatic biosensors are the subject of research due to their potential for in vivo monitoring of glutamate, which is a key neurotransmitter whose concentration is related to healthy brain function. This study reports the use of biocompatible oxidised carbon nanohorns (o-CNH) with a high surface area, to enhance the immobilization of glutamate oxidase (GluOx) for improved biosensor performance. Two families of biosensors were designed to interact with the anionic GluOx. Family-1 consists of covalently functionalised o-CNH possessing hydrazide (HYZ) and amine (PEG-NH2) terminated surfaces and Family-2 comprised non-covalently functionalised o-CNH with different loadings of polyethyleneimine (PEI) to form a cationic hybrid. Amperometric detection of H2O2 formed by enzymatic oxidation of glutamate revealed a good performance from all designs with the most improved performance by the PEI hybrid systems. The best response was from a o-CNH : PEI ratio of 1 : 10 mg mL-1, which yielded a glutamate calibration plateau, JMAX, of 55 ± 9 μA cm-2 and sensitivity of 111 ± 34 μA mM-1 cm-2. The low KM of 0.31 ± 0.05 mM indicated the retention of the enzyme function, and a limit of detection of 0.02 ± 0.004 μM and a response time of 0.88 ± 0.13 s was determined. The results demonstrate the high sensitivity of these biosensors and their potential for future use for the detection of glutamate in vivo.

Frontiers in Electrochemical Sensors for Neurotransmitter Detection: Towards Measuring Neurotransmitters as Chemical Diagnostics for Brain Disorders

It is extremely challenging to chemically diagnose disorders of the brain. There is hence great interest in designing and optimizing tools for direct detection of chemical biomarkers implicated in neurological disorders to improve diagnosis and treatment. Tools that are capable of monitoring brain chemicals, neurotransmitters in particular, need to be biocompatible, perform with high spatiotemporal resolution, and ensure high selectivity and sensitivity. Recent advances in electrochemical methods are addressing these criteria; the resulting devices demonstrate great promise for in vivo neurotransmitter detection. None of these devices are currently used for diagnostic purposes, however these cutting-edge technologies are promising more sensitive, selective, faster, and less invasive measurements. Via this review we highlight significant technical advances and in vivo studies, performed in the last 5 years, that we believe will facilitate the development of diagnostic tools for brain disorders.

Development of a novel micro biosensor for in vivo monitoring of glutamate release in the brain

L- Glutamate is the main excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and hyperglutamatergic signaling is implicated in neurological and neurodegenerative diseases. Monitoring glutamate with a glutamate oxidase-based amperometric biosensor offers advantages such as high spatial and high temporal resolution. However, commercially-available glutamate biosensors are expensive and larger in size. Here, we report the development of 50 µm diameter biosensor for real-time monitoring of L-glutamate in vivo. A polymer, poly-o-phenylenediamine (PPD) layer was electropolymerized onto a 50 µm Pt wire to act as a permselective membrane. Then, glutamate oxidase entrapped in a biocompatible chitosan matrix was cast onto the microelectrode surface. Finally, ascorbate oxidase was coated to eliminate interferences from high levels of extracellular ascorbic acid present in brain tissue. L-glutamate measurements were performed amperometrically at an applied potential of 0.6 V vs Ag/AgCl. The biosensor exhibited a linear range from 5 to 150 μM, with a high sensitivity of 0.097 ± 0.001 nA/μM and one-week storage stability. The biosensor also showed a rapid steady state response to L-glutamate within 2 s, with a limit of detection of 0.044 μM. The biosensor was used successfully to detect stimulated glutamate in the subthalamic nucleus in brain slices and in vivo. Thus, this biosensor is appropriate for future neuroscience applications.

Pt-grown carbon nanofibers for enzymatic glutamate biosensors and assessment of their biocompatibility

Application-specific carbon nanofibers grown from Pt-catalyst layers have been shown to be a promising material for biosensor development. Here we demonstrate immobilization of glutamate oxidase on them and their use for amperometric detection of glutamate at two different potentials. At −0.15 V vs. Ag/AgCl at concentrations higher than 100 μM the oxygen reduction reaction severely interferes with the enzymatic production of H₂O₂ and consequently affects the detection of glutamate. On the other hand, at 0.6 V vs. Ag/AgCl enzyme saturation starts to affect the measurement above a glutamate concentration of 100 μM. Moreover, we suggest here that glutamate itself might foul Pt surfaces to some degree, which should be taken into account when designing Pt-based sensors operating at high anodic potentials. Finally, the Pt-grown and Ni-grown carbon nanofibers were shown to be biocompatible. However, the cells on Pt-grown carbon nanofibers had different morphology and formation of filopodia compared to those on Ni-grown carbon nanofibers. The effect was expected to be caused rather by the different fiber dimensions between the samples than the catalyst metal itself. Further experiments are required to find the optimal dimensions of CNFs for biological purposes.

Pt-grown carbon nanofibers were utilized for the fabrication of glutamate biosensors and in addition their biocompatibility was assessed.

Altered hypermetabolic response to cortical spreading depolarizations after traumatic brain injury in rats

Spreading depolarizations are waves of near-complete breakdown of neuronal transmembrane ion gradients, free energy starving, and mass depolarization. Spreading depolarizations in electrically inactive tissue are associated with poor outcome in patients with traumatic brain injury. Here, we studied changes in regional cerebral blood flow and brain oxygen (PbtO2), glucose ([Glc]b), and lactate ([Lac]b) concentrations in rats, using minimally invasive real-time sensors. Rats underwent either spreading depolarizations chemically triggered by KCl in naïve cortex in absence of traumatic brain injury or spontaneous spreading depolarizations in the traumatic penumbra after traumatic brain injury, or a cluster of spreading depolarizations triggered chemically by KCl in a remote window from which spreading depolarizations invaded penumbral tissue. Spreading depolarizations in noninjured cortex induced a hypermetabolic response characterized by a decline in [Glc]b and monophasic increases in regional cerebral blood flow, PbtO2, and [Lac]b, indicating transient hyperglycolysis. Following traumatic brain injury, spontaneous spreading depolarizations occurred, causing further decline in [Glc]b and reducing the increase in regional cerebral blood flow and biphasic responses of PbtO2 and [Lac]b, followed by prolonged decline. Recovery of PbtO2 and [Lac]b was significantly delayed in traumatized animals. Prespreading depolarization [Glc]b levels determined the metabolic response to clusters. The results suggest a compromised hypermetabolic response to spreading depolarizations and slower return to physiological conditions following traumatic brain injury-induced spreading depolarizations.

Sequential enzymatic derivatization coupled with online microdialysis sampling for simultaneous profiling of mouse tumor extracellular hydrogen peroxide, lactate, and glucose

Probing tumor extracellular metabolites is a vitally important issue in current cancer biology. In this study an analytical system was constructed for the in vivo monitoring of mouse tumor extracellular hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), lactate, and glucose by means of microdialysis (MD) sampling and fluorescence determination in conjunction with a smart sequential enzymatic derivatization scheme-involving a loading sequence of fluorogenic reagent/horseradish peroxidase, microdialysate, lactate oxidase, pyruvate, and glucose oxidase-for step-by-step determination of sampled H₂O₂, lactate, and glucose in mouse tumor microdialysate. After optimization of the overall experimental parameters, the system's detection limit reached as low as 0.002 mM for H₂O₂, 0.058 mM for lactate, and 0.055 mM for glucose, based on 3 μL of microdialysate, suggesting great potential for determining tumor extracellular concentrations of lactate and glucose. Spike analyses of offline-collected mouse tumor microdialysate and monitoring of the basal concentrations of mouse tumor extracellular H₂O₂, lactate, and glucose, as well as those after imparting metabolic disturbance through intra-tumor administration of a glucose solution through a prior-implanted cannula, were conducted to demonstrate the system's applicability. Our results evidently indicate that hyphenation of an MD sampling device with an optimized sequential enzymatic derivatization scheme and a fluorescence spectrometer can be used successfully for multi-analyte monitoring of tumor extracellular metabolites in living animals.

Characterization of Biosensors Based on Recombinant Glutamate Oxidase: Comparison of Crosslinking Agents in Terms of Enzyme Loading and Efficiency Parameters

Amperometric l-glutamate (Glu) biosensors, based on both wild-type and a recombinant form of l-glutamate oxidase (GluOx), were designed and characterized in terms of enzyme-kinetic, sensitivity and stability parameters in attempts to fabricate a real-time Glu monitoring device suitable for future long-term detection of this amino acid in biological and other complex media. A comparison of the enzyme from these two sources showed that they were similar in terms of biosensor performance. Optimization of the loading of the polycationic stabilization agent, polyethyleneimine (PEI), was established before investigating a range of crosslinking agents under different conditions: glutaraldehyde (GA), polyethylene glycol (PEG), and polyethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (PEGDE). Whereas PEI-free biosensor designs lost most of their meager Glu sensitivity after one or two days, configurations with a 2:5 ratio of dip-evaporation applications of PEI(1%):GluOx(400 U/mL) displayed a 20-fold increase in their initial sensitivity, and a decay half-life extended to 10 days. All the crosslinkers studied had no effect on initial Glu sensitivity, but enhanced biosensor stability, provided the crosslinking procedure was carried out under well-defined conditions. The resulting biosensor design based on the recombinant enzyme deposited on a permselective layer of poly-(ortho-phenylenediamine), PoPD/PEI₂/GluOx₅/PEGDE, displayed good sensitivity (LOD < 0.2 μM), response time (t90% < 1 s) and stability over a 90-day period, making it an attractive candidate for future long-term monitoring of Glu concentration dynamics in complex media.

Microfabricated, amperometric, enzyme-based biosensors for in vivo applications

Miniaturized electrochemical in vivo biosensors allow the measurement of fast extracellular dynamics of neurotransmitter and energy metabolism directly in the tissue. Enzyme-based amperometric biosensing is characterized by high specificity and precision as well as high spatial and temporal resolution. Aside from glucose monitoring, many systems have been introduced mainly for application in the central nervous system in animal models. We compare the microsensor principle with other methods applied in biomedical research to show advantages and drawbacks. Electrochemical sensor systems are easily miniaturized and fabricated by microtechnology processes. We review different microfabrication approaches for in vivo sensor platforms, ranging from simple modified wires and fibres to fully microfabricated systems on silicon, ceramic or polymer substrates. The various immobilization methods for the enzyme such as chemical cross-linking and entrapment in polymer membranes are discussed. The resulting sensor performance is compared in detail. We also examine different concepts to reject interfering substances by additional membranes, aspects of instrumentation and biocompatibility. Practical considerations are elaborated, and conclusions for future developments are presented. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

A polyaniline wrapped aminated graphene composite on nickel foam as three-dimensional electrodes for enzymatic microfuel cells

Ni foam coated with a NH₂-G/PAni composite is reported as a promising 3D electrode material for enzymatic microfuel cells for the first time.

One-pot and one-step synthesis of bioactive urease/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposites and their application in detection of urea

This communication describes a novel environmentally friendly method to prepare bioactive urease/ZnFe2O4 nanocomposites through a one-pot and one-step process. The synthetic procedure is triggered through a biological mineralization process of decomposition of urea catalyzed by urease. During the growth of ZnFe2O4, urease molecules are immobilized by original ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles. As a consequence, the bioactive urease/ZnFe2O4 nanoparticle composites are assembled. This simple route is expected to endow the bioactive nanocomposites with new properties for various interesting fields.

Protein adsorption onto nanomaterials for the development of biosensors and analytical devices: a review

An important consideration for the development of biosensors is the adsorption of the biorecognition element to the surface of a substrate. As the first step in the immobilization process, adsorption affects most immobilization routes and much attention is given into the research of this process to maximize the overall activity of the biosensor. The use of nanomaterials, specifically nanoparticles and nanostructured films, offers advantageous properties that can be fine-tuned to maximize interactions with specific proteins to maximize activity, minimize structural changes, and enhance the catalytic step. In the biosensor field, protein-nanomaterial interactions are an emerging trend that span across many disciplines. This review addresses recent publications about the proteins most frequently used, their most relevant characteristics, and the conditions required to adsorb them to nanomaterials. When relevant and available, subsequent analytical figures of merits are discussed for selected biosensors. The general trend amongst the research papers allows concluding that the use of nanomaterials has already provided significant improvements in the analytical performance of many biosensors and that this research field will continue to grow.

Probing immobilization mechanism of alpha-chymotrypsin onto carbon nanotube in organic media by molecular dynamics simulation

The enzyme immobilization has been adopted to enhance the activity and stability of enzymes in non-aqueous enzymatic catalysis. However, the activation and stabilization mechanism has been poorly understood on experiments. Thus, we used molecular dynamics simulation to study the adsorption of α-chymotrypsin (α-ChT) on carbon nanotube (CNT) in aqueous solution and heptane media. The results indicate that α-ChT has stronger affinity with CNT in aqueous solution than in heptane media, as confirmed by more adsorption atoms, larger contact area and higher binding free energies. Although the immobilization causes significant structure deviations from the crystal one, no significant changes in secondary structure of the enzyme upon adsorption are observed in the two media. Different from aqueous solution, the stabilization effects on some local regions far from the surface of CNT were observed in heptane media, in particular for S1 pocket, which should contribute to the preservation of specificity reported by experiments. Also, CNT displays to some extent stabilization role in retaining the catalytic H-bond network of the active site in heptane media, which should be associated with the enhanced activity of enzymes. The observations from the work can provide valuable information for improving the catalytic properties of enzymes in non-aqueous media.

Stabilization of Prussian blue with polyaniline and carbon nanotubes in neutral media for in vivo determination of glucose in rat brains

This study demonstrates a new electrochemical microbiosensor for selectivein vivomonitoring of glucose in rat brains.

Microelectronics-based biosensors dedicated to the detection of neurotransmitters: a review

Dysregulation of neurotransmitters (NTs) in the human body are related to diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. The mechanisms of several neurological disorders, such as epilepsy, have been linked to NTs. Because the number of diagnosed cases is increasing, the diagnosis and treatment of such diseases are important. To detect biomolecules including NTs, microtechnology, micro and nanoelectronics have become popular in the form of the miniaturization of medical and clinical devices. They offer high-performance features in terms of sensitivity, as well as low-background noise. In this paper, we review various devices and circuit techniques used for monitoring NTs in vitro and in vivo and compare various methods described in recent publications.

A robust, state-of-the-art amperometric microbiosensor for glutamate detection

Scientific knowledge of glutamate (GLU) neurobiology is severely hampered by the inadequacy of the available in vivo brain sampling techniques. Due to the crucial role of GLU in central nervous system function and pathology, the development of a reliable sampling device is mandatory. GLU biosensor holds potential to address many of the known issues of in vivo GLU measurement. We report here on the development and test of a labor- and cost-effective microbiosensor, suitable to be applied for measuring brain GLU. A glycerol-based cryopreservation method was also tested. Needle type Pt biosensors were coated with a permselective Nafion-Poly(o-phenylenediamine) layer and cross-linked to l-glutamate oxidase with poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether. Tested in vitro, the device shows high sensitivity and specificity for GLU, while being poorly influenced by common interfering substances such as ascorbate, dopamine and dihydroxyphenylacetic acid. Further, the cryopreservation procedure kept sensitivity unaltered for 30 days and possibly longer. We conclude that a highly efficient GLU biosensor of minimal dimensions can be consistently and affordably constructed with relative ease. Together with the possibility of cryopreservation this shall foster diffusion and exploitation of GLU biosensors technology.

Evolution of histamine oxidase activity for biotechnological applications

Histamine is present to various degrees in many foods, and concentrations in fish samples are considered a good indicator of freshness and hygienic food quality. Seeking for innovative methods to quantify histamine in foods, we used a synthetic gene designed on the sequence of histamine oxidase from Arthrobacter crystallopoietes (HOD) as the starting point in this study to develop a biosensor. HOD was expressed in Escherichia coli cells with a yield of ∼7 mg protein/L of fermentation broth. Recombinant wild-type HOD oxidized histamine and tyramine whereas it was inactive toward putrescine and cadaverine (two amines present in fish samples). The putative residues involved in substrate binding were identified by an in silico docking procedure based on a model of the structure of HOD: site-saturation mutagenesis was performed on 8 positions. The most significant changes in kinetic properties were observed for the P143M HOD: this variant showed higher histamine affinity and lower substrate inhibition by tyramine than wild-type enzyme. Biosensor prototypes were produced using both the wild-type and the P143M variant HOD. These biosensors showed a good sensitivity and selectivity with respect to biogenic amines present in food specimens. Accordingly, the HOD-based biosensor was successfully used to assess histamine in fish samples, yielding values in good agreement with those obtained by HPLC analyses but in a few seconds and at a significantly lower cost per analysis.

Glutaraldehyde cross-linked glutamate oxidase coated microelectrode arrays: selectivity and resting levels of glutamate in the CNS

Glutaraldehyde is widely used as a cross-linking agent for enzyme immobilization onto microelectrodes. Recent studies and prior reports indicate changes in enzyme activity and selectivity with certain glutaraldehyde cross-linking procedures that may jeopardize the performance of microelectrode recordings and lead to falsely elevated responses in biological systems. In this study, the sensitivity of glutaraldehyde cross-linked glutamate oxidase-based microelectrode arrays to 22 amino acids was tested and compared to glutamate. As expected, responses to electroactive amino acids (Cys, Tyr, Trp) were detected at both nonenzyme-coated and enzyme-coated microelectrodes sites, while the remaining amino acids yielded no detectable responses. Electroactive amino acids were effectively blocked with a m-phenylene diamine (mPD) layer and, subsequently, no responses were detected. Preliminary results on the use of poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDE) as a potentially more reliable cross-linking agent for the immobilization of glutamate oxidase onto ceramic-based microelectrode arrays are reported and show no significant advantages over glutaraldehyde as we observe comparable selectivities and responses. These results support that glutaraldehyde-cross-linked glutamate oxidase retains sufficient enzyme specificity for accurate in vivo brain measures of tonic and phasic glutamate levels when immobilized using specific "wet" coating procedures.