Cranberry Proanthocyanidins-PANI Nanocomposite for the Detection of Bacteria Associated with Urinary Tract Infections

Biosensors (Basel). 2021 Jun 19;11(6):199. doi: 10.3390/bios11060199.

Abstract

Consumption of cranberries is associated with the putative effects of preventing urinary tract infections (UTIs). Cranberry proanthocyanidins (PAC) contain unusual double A-type linkages, which are associated with strong interactions with surface virulence factors found on UTI-causing bacteria such as extra-intestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC), depicting in bacterial agglutination processes. In this work, we demonstrated the efficacy of cranberry PAC (200 μg/mL) to agglutinate ExPEC (5.0 × 108 CFU/mL) in vitro as a selective interaction for the design of functionalized biosensors for potential detection of UTIs. We fabricated functionalized screen-printed electrodes (SPEs) by modifying with PAC-polyaniline (PANI) nanocomposites and tested the effectiveness of the PAC-PANI/SPE biosensor for detecting the presence of ExPEC in aqueous suspensions. Results indicated that the PAC-PANI/SPE was highly sensitive (limit of quantification of 1 CFU/mL of ExPEC), and its response was linear over the concentration range of 1-70,000 CFU/mL, suggesting cranberry PAC-functionalized biosensors are an innovative alternative for the detection and diagnosis of ExPEC-associated UTIs. The biosensor was also highly selective, reproducible, and stable.

Keywords: bacteria agglutination; extra-intestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli; nanocomposites; proanthocyanidins; urinary tract infections.

MeSH terms

  • Aniline Compounds
  • Bacteria*
  • Escherichia coli
  • Fruit
  • Humans
  • Nanocomposites / analysis*
  • Plant Extracts
  • Proanthocyanidins / analysis*
  • Urinary Tract Infections* / microbiology
  • Vaccinium macrocarpon

Substances

  • Aniline Compounds
  • Plant Extracts
  • Proanthocyanidins
  • polyaniline