Combining biofunctional magnetic nanoparticles and ATP bioluminescence for rapid detection of Escherichia coli

A rapid, specific and sensitive method for assay of Escherichia coli (E. coli) using biofunctional magnetic nanoparticles (BMNPs) in combination with adenosine triphosphate (ATP) bioluminescence was proposed. The BMNPs were fabricated by immobilizing a specific anti-E. coli antibody on the surface of amine-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles (about 20 nm in diameter), and then was applied to capture the target bacteria E. coli from samples. The BMNPs exhibited high capture efficiency to E. coli. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images showed that the BMNPs were bound to the surface of entire E. coli cells. The target bacteria became magnetic so that could be isolated easily from the sample solution by employing an external magnetic field. The concentration of E. coli captured by the BMNPs was then detected by an ATP bioluminescence method. The optimization of ATP measurement was carried out to improve the detection sensitivity. The proposed method was applied to detect the E. coli inoculated into pasteurized milk with low detection limit (20 cfu/mL) and short detection time (about 1 h).