Development of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using highly-specific monoclonal antibodies against plumbagin

Plumbagin (PL; 5-hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone) is a natural compound mainly isolated from Plumbago zeylanica. This plant is distributed in Southeast Asia, and well known as Ayurvedic medicine in India for its medicinal properties. PL has been shown to have various pharmacological activities. We have successfully prepared monoclonal antibodies against PL, and developed an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) system for determination of PL. 3-(5-Hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone-3-yl) propanoic acid was synthesized and purified to prepare PL-bovine serum albumin conjugate (PL-BSA), which was used as an immunogen. PL-BSA conjugate was administered into BALB/c male mice for production of monoclonal antibodies against PL. The monoclonal antibody against PL which is secreted from established hybridoma cell line 3A3 (MAb 3A3) has been proven to have highly-specific to PL resulting from cross-reactivities test. The range for calibration of PL by ELISA was 0.2-25 μg mL⁻¹. Based on validation analysis, this analytical method by ELISA is a precise, accurate, and sensitive method for the determination of PL in plant.     

Theoretical investigations on the stereoselectivity of the proline catalyzed Mannich reaction in DMSO

The stereocontrol steps of the (S)-proline catalyzed Mannich reaction of cyclohexanone, formaldehyde, and aniline were theoretically investigated. The geometries of reactants, products, and transition states were optimized using density functional theory using the B3LYP functional with the 6-31++G(d,p) basis set. The energies of these compounds were then more accurately determined at the MP2 level, and the effect of DMSO as the solvent was included using a polarizable continuum model (PCM). The reaction was modeled from the previously proposed mechanism that cyclohexanone reacts with (S)-proline to generate an enamine, while formaldehyde reacts with aniline to produce an imine, and that the conformation around the C-N bond of the enamine 1 is crucial for the further enantioselective step. The formation of two conformations of the enamine via a proton transfer process was examined, revealing activation barriers for syn- and anti-enamine proton transfer of 10.2 and 17.9 kcal/mol, respectively. The transformation of syn- to anti-enamine through C-N bond rotation, however, was predicted to require only 4.2 kcal/mol, while the (S)- and (R)-intermediates could be obtained from subsequent reactions between enamine and imine with energy barriers of 8.5 and 12.4 kcal/mol, respectively. The difference between these barriers, but not the C-N rotation energy, becomes larger at the MP2 level and when DMSO as a solvent is included. This predicted enantioselective reaction, through the kinetic and thermodynamic favoring of the (S)-pathway, is in agreement with experimental results, which have reported the (S)-configuration as the major product.     

Development of sensitivity-improved fluorescence-linked immunosorbent assay using a fluorescent single-domain antibody against the bioactive naphthoquinone, plumbagin

A fluorescent single-domain antibody (fluobody), a fusion protein of a green fluorescent protein extracted from Aequorea coerulescens (AcGFP), a mutant that has been codon-optimized for mammalian expression, and a single-chain variable fragment antibody (scFv), against plumbagin (5-hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone; PL) was successfully constructed and expressed in Escherichia coli. The expressed fluobody was purified, refolded, and characterized to develop a speedy, simple, and sensitive fluorescence-linked immunosorbent assay (FLISA) for the determination of PL. In this study, two kinds of fluobody containing PL-scFv at the N-terminus of AcGFP (N fluobody) or the C-terminus of AcGFP (C fluobody) were constructed with flexible amino acid linker (Gly₄Ser)₂ between PL-scFv and AcGFP for comparative purposes. Characterization of the fluobodies revealed that the C fluobody has better properties as a probe for FLISA than the N fluobody because the fluorescence intensity of C fluobody was 18-fold higher than that of N fluobody. Moreover, C fluobody exhibited a fourfold-higher binding affinity than the N fluobody. More interestingly, the limit of detection for PL measurement in FLISA (24 ng mL⁻¹) was improved to eightfold higher than that in conventional ELISA (0.2 μg mL⁻¹), indicating that a sensitive immunoassay could be developed by using fluobody instead of monoclonal antibody or scFv.     

Determination of Pb(II), Cu(II) and Fe(III) with capillary electrophoresis using ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid as a complexing agent and vancomycin as a complex selector.

The simultaneous determination of metal ions using ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) as a complexing agent and vancomycin as a complex selector was successfully studied by capillary electrophoresis with the U-shaped cell. The partial filling method (counter current mode) was used in order to gain selectivity of the separation, and also to increase the detection sensitivity. The effect of the vancomycin concentration on the separation behavior of free EDTA and metal products, and the effect of the EDTA concentration on the stability of metal-EDTA products were considered. Under the optimal condition, the reproducibilities (RSD) of the migration time and the peak area were less than 3.39% and 9.61%, respectively. With the high sensitivity of the method, Pb(II), Cu(II) and Fe(III) in tap water were successfully determined, and the recoveries were 99 - 105%. The concentrations of these metal ions found in tap water did not exceed the maximum allowed concentrations regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.     

A one-step immunochromatographic assay for detecting ginsenosides Rb1 and Rg1

An immunochromatographic strip test has been developed for detecting ginsenosides Rb1 (G-Rb1) and Rg1 (G-Rg1). This qualitative assay system is useful as a rapid screening method for detecting G-Rb1 and G-Rg1 in plants and plant preparations. Our assay is a competitive immunoassay that uses anti-G-Rb1 and anti-G-Rg1 monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and a detection reagent that contains colloidal gold particles coated with anti-G-Rb1 and anti-G-Rg1 MAbs. Detection limits are 2 g mL^–1 for both G-Rb1 and G-Rg1.     

Determination of pheniramine enantiomers in eye drop by capillary electrophoresis using hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin as chiral selector

A capillary zone electrophoresis procedure has been developed for the chiral determination of pheniramine in eye drop. Native and derivative cyclodextrins (CDs) including γ-CD, β-CD, hydroxypropyl-β-CD and dimethyl-β-CD were tested as chiral selectors. Using 30 mM hydroxypropyl-β-CD in 50 mM phosphate buffer (pH 3.0), the acceptable resolution value (R = 1.55) was obtained. The assay was validated for linearity (3.3 × 10⁻⁶–5.0 × 10⁻⁴ M; R ² = 0.9996), limit of detection (3.3 × 10⁻⁶ M), limit of quantification (8.5 × 10⁻⁶ M), analytical precision by terms of intra- and inter-day variability (RSD ≤ 2.57%), and accuracy (recovery ≥ 89.3%). The content of pheniramine in eye drop obtained by the proposed method was in good agreement with the declared value. The results indicated that pheniramine in the eye drop was present as the racemate.     

Growth Inhibition of Thermotolerant Yeast,Kluyveromyces marxianus,in Hydrolysates from Cassava Pulp

In this study, we report the inhibition of Kluyveromyces marxianus TISTR5925 growth and ethanol fermentation in the presence of furan derivatives and weak acids (acetic acid and lactic acid) at high temperatures. Cassava pulp, obtained as the waste from starch processing, was collected from 14 starch factories located in several provinces of Thailand. At a high temperature (42 °C), the cassava pulp hydrolysate from some starch factories strongly inhibited growth and ethanol production of both K. marxianus (strain TISTR5925) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (strain K3). HPLC detected high levels of lactic acid and acetic acid in the hydrolysates, suggesting that these weak acids impaired the growth of K. marxianus at high temperature. We isolated Trp-requiring mutants that had reduced tolerance to acetic acid compared to the wild-type. This sensitivity to acetic acid was suppressed by supplementation of the medium with tryptophan.     

Facile oxidative hydrolysis of acetals to esters using hypervalent iodine(III)/LiBr combination in water

The combination of (diacetoxy)iodobenzene (PhI(OAc)₂, DIB) and lithium bromide (LiBr) efficiently oxidized cyclic and acyclic acetals to the corresponding hydroxyalkyl carboxylic esters and simple esters in good to excellent yields. The merits of this reaction are that it employs commercially available and non-explosive hypervalent iodine(III) reagent, water as the solvent, a short reaction time, and mild reaction conditions.     

Determination of aculeatisides based on immunoassay using a polyclonal antibody against aculeatiside A

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for determination of aculeatisides. Aculeatiside A was conjugated with bovine serum albumin (BSA) for immunization. The ratio of hapten in an antigen conjugate was determined by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization TOF mass spectrometry. Polyclonal antibody was developed in rabbits against an aculeatiside A-BSA conjugate. The antibody was specific for aculeatiside A and aculeatiside B. The range of the immunoassay extended from 100 ng ml(-1) to 5 pg ml(-1) of aculeatisides. Good correlation between ELISA and HPLC methods was obtained when crude extracts of plant samples were analyzed. The optimized ELISA was found to be applicable to the determination of total aculeatisides in various plant samples.     

Chiral separation of pheniramine by capillary electrophoresis partial-filling technique using hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin as chiral selector

A simple capillary electrophoresis partial-filling technique for the enantioseparation of pheniramine is presented. Phosphate buffer and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) were used as the electrolyte and chiral selector, respectively. Several experimental parameters such as HP-β-CD concentration, HP-β-CD plug length, CE temperature and applied voltage were studied. Under the selected conditions, pheniramine enantiomers can be separated within less than 14 min. The assay was validated for linearity (5.0 × 10⁻⁶–5.0 × 10⁻⁴ M; R ² = 0.9987), limit of detection (5.0 × 10⁻⁷ M), limit of quantitation (5.0 × 10⁻⁶ M), analytical precision (%RSD ≤ 9.8) and accuracy (%recovery = 101 ± 3). The proposed methodology was then applied to the analysis of a commercially available pharmaceutical eye drop preparation. The results are in good agreement with that declared by the manufacturer. The proposed methodology provides adequate results in terms of simplicity, cost, sample throughput, repeatability and accuracy for quality control of pheniramine enantiomers in pharmaceutical preparations.