An Ultrasensitive Bioluminescent Enzyme Immunoassay Based on Nanobody/Nanoluciferase Heptamer Fusion for the Detection of Tetrabromobisphenol A in Sediment

Anal Chem. 2020 Jul 21;92(14):10083-10090. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c01908. Epub 2020 Jul 7.

Abstract

Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) is a flame retardant and has become a widely concerning environmental pollutant. An ultrasensitive nanobody-based immunoassay was developed to monitor the exposure of TBBPA in sediment. First, the anti-TBBPA nanobody was fused with nanoluciferase, and then a one-step bioluminescent enzyme immunoassay (BLEIA) was developed with high sensitivity for TBBPA, with a maximum half inhibition concentration (IC50) at 187 pg/mL. Although approximately 10-fold higher sensitivity can be achieved by this developed BLEIA than by the classical two-step ELISA (IC50 at 1778 pg/mL), it is still a challenge to detect trace TBBPA in sediment samples reliably due to the relatively high matrix effect. To further improve the performance of this one-step BLEIA, a C4b-binding protein (C4BP) was inserted as a self-assembling linker between the nanobody and nanoluciferase. Therefore, a heptamer fusion containing seven binders and seven tracers was generated. This reagent improved the binding capacity and signal amplification. The one-step heptamer plus BLEIA based on this immune-reagent shows an additional 7-fold improvement of sensitivity, with the IC50 of 28.9 pg/mL and the limit of detection as low as 2.5 pg/mL. The proposed assay was further applied to determine the trace TBBPA in sediment, and the recovery was within 92-103%. Taking advantage of this heptamer fusion, one-step BLEIA can serve as a powerful tool for fast detection of trace TBBPA in the sediment samples.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Environmental Monitoring*
  • Geologic Sediments / chemistry*
  • Immunoenzyme Techniques
  • Luciferases / chemistry*
  • Luciferases / metabolism
  • Luminescent Measurements*
  • Polybrominated Biphenyls / analysis*
  • Single-Domain Antibodies / chemistry*

Substances

  • Polybrominated Biphenyls
  • Single-Domain Antibodies
  • Luciferases
  • tetrabromobisphenol A