Thermodynamic profiles of the DNA binding of benzophenanthridines sanguinarine and ethidium: A comparative study with sequence specific polynucleotides

Energetics of the binding of two known classical DNA intercalating molecules, ethidium and sanguinarine with four sequence specific polynucleotides, poly(dG-dC).poly(dG-dC), poly(dG).poly(dC), poly(dA-dT).poly(dA-dT), and poly(dA).poly(dT) have been compared under identical conditions. The binding of both the molecules was characterized by strong stabilization of the polynucleotides against thermal strand separation in optical melting as well as differential scanning calorimetry studies. Isothermal titration calorimetry results revealed that the binding of both sanguinarine and ethidium to poly(dG-dC).poly(dG-dC), poly(dA-dT).poly(dA-dT), and poly(dG).poly(dC) was exothermic and favoured by negative enthalpy changes. On the other hand, the binding of both molecules to poly(dA).poly(dT) was endothermic and entropy driven. The binding affinity values obtained from isothermal titration calorimetry data was in close proximity to that derived from thermal melting data. The heat capacity changes obtained from temperature dependence of the enthalpy change gave negative values in the range (?0.4 to 1.25) kJ · mol^?1 · K^?1 for the binding of ethidium and sanguinarine to these polynucleotides. The variations in the values indicate important differences in the formation of the complexes. New insights into the energetics and specificity aspects of interaction of these molecules to DNA have emerged from these studies.     

EFFICIENCY OF PHOTOAFFINITY LABELING DNA HOMOPOLYMERS AND COPOLYMERS WITH ETHIDIUM MONOAZIDE *

Abstract— Photoaffinity labeling of synthetic DN As with ethidium monoazide was studied to determine if the efficiency of adduct formation was related to DNA sequence. Equilibrium drug binding to DNA homopolymers and copolymers was quanitified by phase partition techniques. The amount of drug bound to a deoxypolymer at equilibrium was then compared to the fraction of ethidium analog covalently-linked following photoactivation at the same drug/DNA input ratio. There were significant sequence-related differences in the ability of the photoaffinity probe to label DNA covalently. The efficiency of covalent-adduct formation decreased in the order poly(dG-dC)^. poly(dG-dC)> poly-(dG). poly(dC)poly(dA-dT). poly(dA-dT)poly(dA). poly(dT). Ethidium monoazide was about 2-fold more efficient in labeling deoxyhomopolymers and deoxycopolymers composed of G-C pairs than the A-T base counterparts. In low ionic buffers (0.015 M Na⁺), the efficiency of photoactivation decreased with increasing ethidium monoazide concentrations. However. the base sequence effect was observed over a 40-fold range of drug concentrations. Therefore, the amount of ethidium monoazide bound to a DNA site after irradiation does not appear to represent the true affinity of the drug for that site.     

Entropy driven binding of the alkaloid chelerythrine to polyadenylic acid leads to spontaneous self-assembled structure formation

The binding thermodynamics and interaction of the putative anticancer alkaloid chelerythrine with polyadenylic acid were investigated by isothermal titration calorimetry, absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy, circular dichroism, differential scanning calorimetry and thermal melting experiments. The equilibrium binding constant was evaluated to be of the order of 10⁷ M⁻¹. Strong positive entropic and favorable enthalpic contributions to the binding were revealed. The binding affinity was enhanced within (10 to 100) mM Na⁺ concentration. Circular dichroism spectra confirmed that the increase in entropy change was caused by a strong conformational change in the RNA polynucleotide. Absorption and circular dichroism melting studies revealed that chelerythrine binding induced self-assembled duplex structure formation in poly(A) molecules resulting in a cooperative melting profile. This was further confirmed from differential scanning calorimetry data. The intercalation binding of the alkaloid involved strong energy transfer from the polynucleotide bases to the bound alkaloid molecules. The remarkably high entropy driven binding of the alkaloid induced spontaneous self-assembled structure formation in poly(A) and the associated binding affinity is the highest so far reported for a small molecule binding to poly(A).     

Interaction between polydeoxyadenylic acid and β-glucan from Lentinus edodes

The interaction between polydeoxyadenylic acid (poly(dA)) and single chains of Lentinan (s-LNT) was investigated by circular dichroism spectra (CD), UV–Vis spectra, nano-differential scanning calorimetry (nano-DSC), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). All the experimental results indicated that poly(dA) really interacted with s-LNT having molecular weight of 5.3 × 10⁵ to form a novel composite with stiff conformation through hydrogen bonding, whereas the triple helical Lentinan (t-LNT) could not, implying that it was the single chain but not the triple helical chain interacted with poly(dA). Meanwhile, the interaction strongly depended on the concentration of s-LNT and pH. When the poly(dA) concentration was fixed at 5.3 μg/ml, the interaction between poly(dA) and s-LNT increased with an increase in s-LNT concentration, then reached the maximum at ～60 μg/ml, finally decreased with further increase of s-LNT concentration. This was due to self-renaturation of s-LNT into triple helix or incomplete species confirmed by nano-DSC. The poly(dA)/s-LNT complex could exist in solutions with pH 5.5–11.5, and pH 7–10 was the optimal condition for the complex, showing higher stability against pH than the positive control of poly(dA)/s-SPG. The dynamic behaviors of the complex demonstrated that the interaction between s-LNT and poly(dA) occurred rapidly, and reached stable within 3–7 h. Moreover, the thermal stability of poly(dA) was enhanced by complexation with s-LNT. The topograph of the poly(dA)/s-LNT complex was shown as rod-like stiff architecture. This work enlarges the application of LNT in the biomedical field.     

Thermodynamic characterization of proflavine–DNA binding through microcalorimetric studies

The interaction of an important acridine dye, proflavine hydrochloride, with double stranded DNA was investigated using isothermal titration calorimetry and differential scanning calorimetry. The equilibrium constant for the binding reaction was calculated to be (1.60 ± 0.04) · 10⁵ · M⁻¹ at T = 298.15 K. The binding of proflavine hydrochloride to DNA was favored by both negative enthalpy and positive entropy contributions to the Gibbs energy. The equilibrium constant for the binding reaction decreased with increasing temperature. The standard molar enthalpy change became increasingly negative while the standard molar entropy change became less positive with rise in temperature. However, the standard molar Gibbs free energy change varied marginally suggesting the occurrence of enthalpy–entropy compensation phenomenon. The binding reaction was dominated by non-polyelectrolytic forces which remained virtually unchanged at all the salt concentrations studied. The binding also significantly increased the thermal stability of DNA against thermal denaturation.     

Thermodynamic analysis of partially folded states of myoglobin in presence of 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol

The thermal denaturation of myoglobin was studied in the presence of 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE) at various pH values using differential scanning calorimetry and UV–visible spectroscopy. The most obvious effect of TFE was lowering the transition temperature up to 1.5 mol · kg⁻¹, beyond which no thermal transitions were observed. The protein conformation was analysed by fluorescence and circular dichroism measurements. Quantitative binding of ANS to the TFE induced molten globule state of myoglobin was studied by using isothermal titration calorimetry. The results enable quantitative estimation of the binding strength of ANS with the molten globule state of myoglobin along with the enthalpic and entropic contributions to the binding process. The results suggest occurrence of common structural features of the molten globule states of proteins offering two types of binding sites to ANS molecules which are a widely used fluorescence probe to characterise partially folded states of proteins.     

Electronic and vibrational circular dichroism spectroscopic study of non-covalent interactions of meso-5,10,15,20-tetrakis(1-methylpyridinium-4-yl)porphyrin with (dG-dC)10 and (dA-dT)10

The non-covalent interactions of (dG-dC)₁₀ and (dA-dT)₁₀ with 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(1-methylpyridinium-4-yl)porphyrin (TMPyP) were studied using the combination of electronic circular dichroism (ECD), vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) spectroscopy, and UV–vis and IR absorption spectroscopy at different ratios of both components r = [oligonucleotide]/[TMPyP] = 2/1–10/1 where [oligonucleotide] and [TMPyP] are the amount concentrations of oligonucleotide per base-pair and TMPyP, respectively. It was shown that TMPyP with (dG-dC)₁₀ provided hemiintercalative binding mode for r = 4/1 that is manifested in vibrational spectra: The absorption band assigned to the C6O6 stretching vibration of guanine is shifted from 1683 to 1672 cm⁻¹, the corresponding VCD couplet from 1694(−)/1674(+) to 1684(−)/1663(+) cm⁻¹ and its intensity decreases. The absorption band assigned to the C2O2 stretching vibration of cytosine is shifted from 1652 to 1644 cm⁻¹ and its intensity increases. TMPyP with (dA-dT)₁₀ provided three binding modes: (i) external binding to the phosphate backbone, (ii) external minor groove binding for the ratios >6/1 and (iii) external major groove binging associated with the partial B- to Z-transition for the ratios <4/1. The major groove binding is manifested in VCD spectra by the intensity decrease of the bands 1655 and 1638 cm⁻¹ assigned to the thymine vibrations while the bands assigned to the adenine vibrations are unchanged. In the (dA-dT)₁₀–TMPyP complexes, the external binding to the phosphate backbone accompanied by self-stacking of porphyrins along the phosphate backbone chain is preferred at temperatures higher than 40 °C.     

Naphthalene Imide Conjugates: Formation of Supramolecular Assemblies,and the Encapsulation and Release of Dyes through DNA‐Mediated Disassembly

We report the synthesis of two new amphiphilic conjugates 1 and 2 based on naphthalene di‐ and monoimide chromophores and the investigation of their photophysical, self‐assembly and DNA‐binding properties. These conjugates showed aqueous good solubility and exhibited strong interactions with DNA and polynucleotides such as poly(dG?dC)–poly(dG?dC) and poly(dA?dT)–poly(dA?dT). The interaction of these conjugates with DNA was evaluated by photo‐ and biophysical techniques. These studies revealed that the conjugates interact with DNA through intercalation with association constants in the order of 5–8×10⁴ M ^?1. Of these two conjugates, bolaamphiphile 1 exhibited a supramolecular assembly that formed vesicles with an approximate diameter of 220 nm in the aqueous medium at a critical aggregation concentration of 0.4 mM , which was confirmed by SEM and TEM. These vesicular structures showed a strong affinity for hydrophobic molecules such as Nile red through encapsulation. Uniquely, when exposed to DNA the vesicles disassembled, and therefore this transformation could be utilised for the encapsulation and release of hydrophobic molecules by employing DNA as a stimulus.     

MONOADDITION OF DICTAMNINE TO SYNTHETIC DOUBLE-STRANDED POLYDEOXYRIBONUCLEOTIDES IN UVA AND THE EFFECT OF PHOTOMODIFIED DNA ON TEMPLATE ACTIVITY

Abstract— The photoreactivity of dictamnine, a furoquinoline alkaloid, towards different synthetic DNAs has been studied. The ratio of the photobinding of [₃H]-dictamnine to poly(dA-dT) poly(dA-dT): poly(dG-dC) poly(dG-dC): poly(dA-dU) poly(dA-dU): poly(dA) poly(dT), in relation to that of calf thymus DNA, is 18:1:0.5:0.3. Prior treatment of calf thymus DNA with dictamnine in light inhibits the subsequent incorporation of 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MOP). These results suggest that the sites in DNA for the photobinding of dictamnine are probably identical with those for monoad-ducts of 8-MOP. Furthermore, the template activity of photomodified DNA in the RNA polymerase reaction is considerably inhibited for poly(dA-dT)poly(dA-dT), to a lesser extent for calf thymus DNA, but almost not affected for the linear copolymer, poly(dA)-poly(dT).     

DNA binding of benzophenanthridine compounds sanguinarine versus ethidium: Comparative binding and thermodynamic profile of intercalation

There is compelling evidence that cellular DNA is the target of many small molecule anticancer agents. Consequently, elucidation of the molecular nature governing the interaction of small molecules to DNA is paramount to the progression of the rational drug design strategies. In this study, we have compared the binding and thermodynamic aspects of two known DNA binding agents, ethidium and sanguinarine with calf thymus DNA. The study revealed non-cooperative binding phenomena for both the drugs to DNA with an affinity similar for ethidium and sanguinarine as observed from different techniques. The binding phenomena analyzed from isothermal titration calorimetry showed exothermic binding for both compounds that was favoured by negative enthalpy and positive entropy changes typical of intercalative binding. The binding of both the drugs was further characterized by strong stabilization of DNA against thermal strand separation in optical melting as well as differential scanning calorimetry studies. The data of the salt dependence of binding of sanguinarine and ethidium from the plot of log K versus log [Na⁺] revealed a slope of ?0.711 and ?0.875, respectively, consistent with the values predicted by the theories for the binding of monovalent cations and the binding free energy has been analyzed for contributions from polyelectrolytic and non-polyelectrolytic forces. The salt dependence of the binding was also evident from the conformational changes in the circular dichroism where both extrinsic and induced changes were lowered on increasing the salt concentration. The heat capacity changes obtained from temperature dependence of enthalpy change gave values of (?590 and ?670) J · mol^?1 · K^?1, respectively for the binding of sanguinarine and ethidium to DNA. Overall the DNA binding of ethidium was slightly more favoured over sanguinarine.     

Synthesis of carbohydrate-functionalized thiophene-capped cyclopenta[c]thiophene for concanavalin A recognition

Synthetic route to two different carbohydrate-functionalized oligothiophenes comprising central cyclopenta[c]thiophene (CPT) moiety was demonstrated. Turbidimetric analysis revealed enhanced interaction for divalent α-mannose-functionalized terthiophene 7 with Con A. The extent of binding interaction for 7-Con A complex formation was determined from isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) measurements and the binding constant found (K_ITC) 2.4(6) × 10⁵ M^?1.     

The mode of binding ACMA-DNA relies on the base-pair nature

A thermodynamic and kinetic study on the mode of binding of 9-amino-6-chloro-2-methoxi-acridine (ACMA) to poly(dA-dT)·poly(dA-dT) and poly(dG-dC)·poly(dG-dC) has been undertaken at pH = 7.0 and I = 0.1 M. The spectrophotometric, kinetic (T-jump), circular dichroism, viscometric and calorimetric information gathered point to formation of a fully intercalated ACMA complex with poly(dA-dT)·poly(dA-dT) and another one only partially intercalated (7%) with poly(dG-dC)·poly(dG-dC). The ACMA affinity with the A-T bases was higher than with the G-C bases. The two polynucleotide sequences give rise to external complexes when the ACMA concentration is raised, namely, the electrostatic complex poly(dA-dT)·poly(dA-dT)-ACMA and the major groove binding complex poly(dG-dC)·poly(dG-dC)-ACMA. A considerable quenching effect of the ACMA fluorescence is observed with poly(dA-dT)·poly(dA-dT), ascribable to face-to-face location in the intercalated A-T-ACMA base-pairs. The even stronger effect observed in the presence of poly(dG-dC)·poly(dG-dC) is related to the guanine residue from on- and off-slot ACMA positions.     

A thermodynamic investigation on the binding of phenothiazinium dyes azure A and azure B to double stranded RNA polynucleotides

The thermodynamics of the reactions of the two phenothiazinium dyes azure A and azure B with the three double stranded ribonucleic acids, poly(A).poly(U), poly(C).poly(G), poly(I).poly(C) were investigated using DSC and ITC. The bound dyes stabilized the RNAs against thermal strand separation. The binding of azure A to the RNAs was predominantly enthalpy dominated while the binding of azure B was favoured by both negative enthalpy and favourable entropy changes. Although electrostatic interaction had a significant role in the binding, non-polyelectrolytic forces dominated the binding process. The negative values of heat capacity changes for the binding suggested a substantial hydrophobic contribution to the binding process. The overall binding affinity of both the dyes to the RNAs varied in the order, poly(A).poly(U) > poly(C).poly(G) > poly(I).poly(C).     

One-step synthesis of poly(thionine)-Au nano-network and nanowires and its application for non-enzyme biosensing of hydrogen peroxide

We describe the preparation of novel poly(thionine)-Au materials, where the poly(thionine)-Au nano-network and nanowires have been synthesized in aqueous solution via the polymerization of thionine using HAuCl₄ as the oxidant in a single reaction setup. The synthesis process does not require templates, nor does it require large amounts of organic solvents or electrochemical methods. The morphology of the nanocomposites can be controlled by varying the thionine/HAuCl₄ ratio. The resulting poly(thionine)-Au network was used to fabricate a novel non-enzyme hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) biosensor. In pH 7.0 phosphate buffer, almost interference-free determination of H₂O₂ was realized at − 0.1 V versus Ag/AgCl with a linear of 1 × 10^− 4 to 5 × 10^− 2 M, a correlation coefficient of 0.998 and a response time of < 2 s. The developed biosensor showed a detection limit of 0.2 μM (S/N = 3) with very good stability, reproducibility and high selectivity.     

Quantitative aspects of recognition of the antibiotic drug oxytetracycline by bovine serum albumin: Calorimetric and spectroscopic studies

A quantitative understanding of the mode of interaction of drugs with target proteins provides a guide for the synthesis of new drug molecules. The binding of the antibiotic drug oxytetracycline with serum albumin has been studied by a combination of isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy, and circular dichroism spectroscopy. The values of the binding constant (K), enthalpy change (ΔH), entropy (ΔS), and stoichiometry of binding have been determined along with the associated conformational changes in the protein. Oxytetracycline binds to bovine serum albumin with a 1:1 stoichiometry and with a weakly temperature dependent association constant of 1.8 · 10⁴ at T = 298.15 K. The effect of ionic strength, tetrabutylammonium bromide, and sucrose on the thermodynamic parameters obtained from ITC and DSC measurements indicate involvement of predominantly ionic and hydrophobic interactions with a minor hydrogen bonding contribution in the drug-protein complexation. The DSC results on the binding of oxytetracycline with bovine serum albumin in the absence and presence of these additives provide quantitative information on the effect of drugs on the stability of bovine serum albumin, and suggest preferential complexation of one of the domains of the protein. The results further indicate that the drug occupies binding site II on bovine serum albumin.     

Inhibitory activity of hibifolin on adenosine deaminase- experimental and molecular modeling study

Adenosine deaminase (ADA) is an enzyme involved in purine metabolism. ADA converts adenosine to inosine and liberates ammonia. Because of their critical role in the differentiation and maturation of cells, the regulation of ADA activity is considered as a potential therapeutic approach to prevent malignant and inflammatory disorders. In the present study, the inhibitory activity of a plant flavonoid, hibifolin on ADA is investigated using enzyme kinetic assay and isothermal titration calorimetry. The inhibitory constant of hibifolin was found to be 49.92 μM ± 3.98 and the mode of binding was reversible. Isothermal titration calorimetry showed that the compound binds ADA with binding energy of −7.21 Kcal/mol. The in silico modeling and docking studies showed that the bound ligand is stabilized by hydrogen bonds with active site residues of the enzyme. The study reveals that hibifolin can act as a potential inhibitor of ADA.     

Isothermal titration calorimetric and spectroscopic studies on (alcohol + salt) induced partially folded state of α-lactalbumin and its binding with 8-anilino-1-naphthalenesulfonic acid

Interaction of 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) and isopropanol in the presence of equimolar quantities of guanidine thiocyanate (GndSCN) with bovine α-lactalbumin (α-LA) has been investigated by using a combination of isothermal titration calorimetry, circular dichroism, fluorescence, and ultra-violet spectroscopies at in 20 · 10^?3 mol · dm^?3 phosphate buffer pH 7.0. All the thermal unfolding transitions, in the presence of both the (alcohol + salt) mixtures were found to be reversible as judged by the same values of absorbance observed at different temperatures during cooling after the completion of thermal unfolding. In the presence of the 0.25 mol · dm^?3 (HFIP + GndSCN) equimolar mixture and 0.85 mol · dm^?3 (isopropanol + GndSCN) equimolar mixture, α-lactalbumin was observed to be in the partially folded state with significant loss of native tertiary structure. Intrinsic fluorescence results, acrylamide and potassium iodide quenching, 8-anilino-1-naphthalenesulfonic acid (ANS) binding, and energy transfer results also corroborate the presence of partially folded states of α-lactalbumin. Apart from the generation of the partially folded states, it was also observed that destabilizing action of GndSCN is reduced in the presence of isopropanol compared to that in HFIP. Isothermal titration calorimetry has been used to characterize the energetics of ANS binding to the partially folded states of the protein. ITC results indicate that ANS binds to these partially folded states at pH 7.0 due to the presence of two sequentially binding sites on the protein under the solvent conditions employed. For example, ANS binds to the 0.25 mol · dm^?3 (HFIP + GndSCN) induced partially folded state with affinity constants K₁ = (858 ± 220), K₂ = (1.12 ± 0.25) · 10³; enthalpies of binding ΔH₁ = (4.4 ± 1.0) kJ · mol^?1, ΔH₂ = (2.1 ± 0.2) kJ · mol^?1; and entropies of binding ΔS₁ = 70 J · K^?1 · mol^?1 and ΔS₂ = 65 J · K^?1 · mol^?1, respectively at these two sequential binding sites. In light of the fluorescence results, possible binding sites where ANS can bind to the protein have also been suggested.     

Spectroscopic study of the interaction of pazelliptine with nucleic acids

The antitumor drug pazelliptine (PZE) binds to natural and synthetic DNA sequences at 100 mM NaCl, pH 7.0, as deduced from the absorption and fluorescence data. Scatchard plots constructed from the results obtained with poly(dG-dC)-poly(dG-dC) give binding constants of base pairs in the range (2–6) × 10⁵ M⁻¹. The modifications in the absorption and fluorescence spectra observed when PZE binds to various polynucleotides, namely poly(dA-dT)-poly(dA-dT), poly(dA)-poly(dT), poly(dG-dC)-poly(dG-dC) and calf thymus DNA. reveal a change in the protonation state of the drug upon binding, increasing the apparent pK_a of its 9-N nitrogen atom. The PZE excited state properties serve as a sensitive probe to distinguish between homo and hetero A-T sites as well as between AT and GC sites. Fluorescence studies reveal that energy transfer occurs from polynucleotide bases to the bound PZE chromophore, a result consistent with an intercalative mode of binding of the drug to DNA. The emission is enhanced when PZE is bound to A-T base pairs ( 30% increase of φ_F) whereas it is quenched in the vicinity of G-C base pairs ( 90% decrease of φ_F). Furthermore, the fluorescence spectrum obtained with calf thymus DNA is hardly distinguishable from that obtained with poly(dG-dC)-polu(dG-dC), suggesting a binding of PZE to G-C rich regions.     

The role of water in the thermodynamics of drug binding to cyclodextrin

The thermodynamic parameters, Δ_BG^∘, Δ_BH^∘, Δ_BS^∘, and Δ_BC_p, of the drugs flurbiprofen (FLP), nabumetone (NAB), and naproxen (NPX) binding to β-cyclodextrin (βCD) and to γ-cyclodextrin (γCD) in 0.10 M sodium phosphate buffer were determined from isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) measurements over the temperature range from 293.15 K to 313.15 K. The heat capacity changes for the binding reactions ranged from −(362 ± 48) J · mol⁻¹ · K⁻¹ for FLP and −(238 ± 90) J · mol⁻¹ · K⁻¹ for NAB binding in the βCD cavity to 0 for FLP and −(25.1 ± 9.2) J · mol⁻¹ · K⁻¹ for NPX binding in the larger γCD cavity, implying that the structure of water is reorganized in the βCD binding reactions but not reorganized in the γCD binding reactions. Comparison of the fluorescence enhancements of FLP and NAB upon transferring from the aqueous buffer to isopropanol with the maximum fluorescence enhancements observed for their βCD binding reactions indicated that some localized water was retained in the FLP–βCD complex and almost none in the NAB–βCD complex. No fluorescence change occurs with drug binding in the larger γCD cavity, indicating the retention of the bulk water environment in the drug–γCD complex. Since the specific drug binding interactions are essentially the same for βCD and γCD, these differences in the retention of bulk water may account for the enthalpically driven nature of the βCD binding reactions and the entropically driven nature of the γCD binding reactions.     

Determination of nitrite with the electrocatalytic property to the oxidation of nitrite on thionine modified aligned carbon nanotubes

A thionine modified aligned carbon nanotubes (ACNTs) electrode was fabricated and was used to electrochemically determine nitrite. The thionine modified ACNTs electrode exhibited enhanced electrocatalytic behavior to the oxidation of nitrite. The electrochemical mechanism of the thionine/ACNTs electrode towards the oxidation of nitrite was discussed. The thionine modified ACNTs electrode exhibited fast response towards nitrite with a detection limit of 1.12 × 10⁻⁶ mol  L⁻¹ and a linear range of 3 × 10⁻⁶ – 5 × 10⁻⁴ mol  L⁻¹. The proposed method was successfully applied in the detection of nitrite in real samples.