Selective Antibody-Free Sensing Membranes for Picogram Tetracycline Detection

Biosensors (Basel). 2022 Dec 31;13(1):71. doi: 10.3390/bios13010071.

Abstract

As an antibody-free sensing membrane for the detection of the antibiotic tetracycline (TC), a liquid PVC membrane doped with the ion-pair tetracycline/θ-shaped anion [3,3'-Co(1,2-C2B9H11)2]- ([o-COSAN]-) was formulated and deposited on a SWCNT modified gold microelectrode. The chosen transduction technique was electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The PVC membrane was composed of: the tetracycline/[o-COSAN]- ion-pair, a plasticizer. A detection limit of 0.3 pg/L was obtained with this membrane, using bis(2-ethylhexyl) sebacate as a plasticizer. The sensitivity of detection of tetracycline was five times higher than that of oxytetracycline and of terramycin, and 22 times higher than that of demeclocycline. A shelf-life of the prepared sensor was more than six months and was used for detection in spiked honey samples. These results open the way to having continuous monitoring sensors with a high detection capacity, are easy to clean, avoid the use of antibodies, and produce a direct measurement.

Keywords: electrochemical impedance spectroscopy; polyvinyl chloride; selectivity; single-walled carbon nanotubes; tetracycline; tetracycline/[o-COSAN]− ion-pair complex.

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Antibodies
  • Microelectrodes
  • Oxytetracycline*
  • Plasticizers*
  • Tetracycline

Substances

  • Plasticizers
  • Tetracycline
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Antibodies
  • Oxytetracycline

Grants and funding

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, Project NMBP–13-2017 KardiaTool (Grant agreement No. 768686), SEA-on-a-CHIP (FP7- OCEAN-2013) under the grant agreement No. 614168. The authors acknowledge the financial support from the POC4allergies project (Grant Agreement No. 768686), which received funding from ERA PerMed ERA-NET, and the financial support from the Bionanosens project (Grant Agreement No. 9[887]), which received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020.