A new competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for determination of estrogenic bisphenols

Bisphenol A and other hydroxylated diphenylalkanes (generally known as bisphenols) have been identified as potential estrogenic substances. In this paper, a specific polyclonal antibody was produced against these compounds by immunization of rabbits with a conjugate of 4,4-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) valeric acid and bovine serum albumin (BHPVA-BSA). The polyclonal antibody showed specific recognition of the bisphenol structure, while the cross reactions of other common phenolic compounds such as phenol, hydroquinol and p-hydroxybenzoic acid were all lower than 1%. The linear range of bisphenol A calibration curve was 1–10 000 ng ml⁻¹. Real water samples and mouse serum samples were spiked with known amount of bisphenol A and measured by the competitive ELISA. Recoveries were between 92 and 105%. The detection limits were found to be 0.1 ng ml⁻¹ for real water samples and 2 ng ml⁻¹ for serum samples. The method is very useful for monitoring bisphenol compounds in environmental and biological samples.