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Ergot alkaloids, potent mycotoxins produced by Claviceps spp., particularly Claviceps purpurea, pose significant health risks when they contaminate rye and related cereals, leading to ergotism in humans and mammals [1]. In response, the European Union has established Regulation 2023/915, setting maximum residue levels for the sum of 12 principal ergot alkaloids and other mycotoxins including fumonisins (FUM), deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone (ZEN), and T2/HT2 toxins in food products. Given the prevalent co-occurrence of mycotoxins, their simultaneous detection is crucial for ensuring the safety of food and feed [2, 3].
Traditionally, chromatographic techniques such as liquid chromatography coupled with (tandem) mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) have been employed for multiplex detection of mycotoxins [4, 5]. While effective, these methods require specialized facilities, expensive equipment, and skilled personnel. Immunoassays like ELISA and lateral flow assays offer a more accessible alternative for rapid mycotoxin detection, yet they generally lack the capability for concurrent multi-toxin screening.
This study introduces the SAFIA (Suspension Array Fluorescence Immunoassay), a particle-based immunoassay utilizing fluorescence-encoded microparticles for the simultaneous detection of multiple analytes [6, 7]. The assay's innovative advancement comes with the inclusion of ergot alkaloids, a novel addition to its existing detection capabilities for fusarium toxins and trichothecenes, thereby expanding its scope to a broader range of mycotoxins. The assay employs antibodies targeting the ergoline moiety common to all major ergot alkaloids, facilitated by a synthesized hapten mimicking the ergoline structure. This hapten was conjugated to amino-functionalized beads, and a panel of five monoclonal antibodies was evaluated for hapten recognition, binding specificity, and competitive binding efficiency.
Our findings demonstrate that all antibodies displayed similar affinities towards the hapten and lysergol (a stable and less hazardous analogue of lysergic acid used for calibration), achieving detection limits as low as 2 ppb. Cross-reactivity studies and analysis of round-robin test material indicated a significant underestimation of ergot alkaloid levels in samples. However, accurate detection of ergot alkaloids remains feasible through the application of a correction factor to the results, which compensates for this underestimation and ensures the assay's effectiveness. Despite this adjustment, the necessity for enhancements in antibody specificity to improve assay accuracy is evident. Furthermore, the inclusion of the ergot assay in a multiplexed setup for detecting FUM, DON, ZEN, and T-2 toxins showed no interference, although an unexpected inhibition among four out of five ergot antibodies was observed. This underscores the need for an improved immunogen structure to achieve optimal detection of ergot alkaloids.
In conclusion, our study presents a promising approach for the multiplexed detection of ergot alkaloids alongside other mycotoxins, highlighting the potential of SAFIA in enhancing food and feed safety through improved mycotoxin screening. Future work will focus on refining antibody specificity and assay configurations to overcome current limitations and ensure accurate, comprehensive mycotoxin detection.
Flow cytometry-based immunoassays are valuable in biomedical research and clinical applications due to their high throughput and multianalyte capability, but their adoption in areas such as food safety and environmental monitoring is limited by long assay times and complex workflows. Rapid, simplified bead-based cytometric immunoassays are needed to make these methods viable for point-of-need applications, especially with the increasing accessibility of miniaturized cytometers. This work introduces superparamagnetic hybrid polystyrene-silica core−shell microparticles as promising alternatives to conventional polymer beads in competitive cytometric immunoassays. These beads, featuring high specificity, sensitivity, and excellent handling capabilities via magnetic separation, were evaluated with three different antibodies and binding methods, showing variations in signal intensity based on the antibody and its attachment method. The optimal performance was achieved through a secondary antibody binding approach, providing strong and consistent signals with minimal uncertainty. The optimized protocol made it possible to achieve a detection limit of 0.025 nM in a total assay time of only 15 min and was successfully used to detect ochratoxin A (OTA) in raw flour samples. This work highlights the potential of these beads as versatile tools for flow cytometry-based immunoassays, with significant implications for food safety, animal health,
environmental monitoring, and clinical diagnostics.
We developed a two-step semi-synthesis for the preparation of isotopically labeled EAs, starting from native EAs. This universal strategy enabled the successful synthesis of all isotopically labeled priority EAs. The structure of the isotopically labeled EAs was confirmed by HPLC-HR-MS/MS using native, unlabeled EAs as a reference standard. The next step will be the implementation of the isotopically labeled standards in the European standard procedure EN 17425 to improve the quantification of EAs in foodstuffs.
Ergot alkaloids (EAs) formed by Claviceps fungi are one of the most common food contaminants worldwide, affecting cereals such as rye, wheat, and barley. To accurately determine the level of contamination and to monitor EAs maximum levels set by the European Union, the six most common EAs (so-called priority EAs) and their corresponding epimers are quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). The quantification of EAs in complex food matrices without appropriate internal tandards is challenging but currently carried out in the standard method EN 7425:2021 due to their commercial unavailability. To address the need for isotopically labeled EAs, we focus on two semi-synthetic approaches for the synthesis of these reference standards. Therefore, we investigate the feasibility of the N6-demethylation of native ergotamine to yield norergotamine, which can subsequently be remethylated with an isotopically labeled methylating reagent, such as iodomethane (13CD3-I), to yield isotopically labeled ergotamine and its C8-epimer ergotaminine. Testing the isotopically labeled ergotamine/-inine against native ergotamine/-inine with HPLC coupled to high-resolution HR-MS/MS proved the structure of ergotamine-13CD3 and ergotaminine-13CD3. Thus, for the first time, we can describe their synthesis from unlabeled, native ergotamine. Furthermore, this approach is promising as a universal way to synthesize other isotopically labeled EAs.
Development of electrochemical antibody-based and enzymatic assays for mycotoxin analysis in food
(2023)
Electrochemical methods are promising to meet the demand for easy-to-use devices monitoring key parameters in the food industry. Many companies run own lab procedures for mycotoxin analysis, but it is a major goal to simplify the analysis. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using horseradish peroxidase as enzymatic label, together with 3,3',5,5' tetramethylbenzidine (TMB)/H2O2 as substrates allows sensitive mycotoxin detection with optical detection methods. For the miniaturization of the detection step, an electrochemical system for mycotoxin analysis was developed. To this end, the electrochemical detection of TMB was studied by cyclic voltammetry on different screen-printed electrodes (carbon and gold) and at different pH values (pH 1 and pH 4). A stable electrode reaction, which is the basis for the further construction of the electrochemical detection system, could be achieved at pH 1 on gold electrodes. An amperometric detection method for oxidized TMB, using a custom-made flow cell for screen-printed electrodes, was established and applied for a competitive magnetic bead-based immunoassay for the mycotoxin ochratoxin A. A limit of detection of 150 pM (60 ng/L) could be obtained and the results were verified with optical detection. The applicability of the magnetic bead-based immunoassay was tested in spiked beer using a handheld potentiostat connected via Bluetooth to a smartphone for amperometric detection allowing to quantify ochratoxin A down to 1.2 nM (0.5 µg/L). Based on the developed electrochemical detection system for TMB, the applicability of the approach was demonstrated with a magnetic bead-based immunoassay for the ergot alkaloid, ergometrine. Under optimized assay conditions a limit of detection of 3 nM (1 µg/L) was achieved and in spiked rye flour samples ergometrine levels in a range from 25 to 250 µg/kg could be quantified. All results were verified with optical detection. The developed electrochemical detection method for TMB gives great promise for the detection of TMB in many other HRP-based assays. A new sensing approach, based on an enzymatic electrochemical detection system for the mycotoxin fumonisin B1 was established using an Aspergillus niger fumonisin amine oxidase (AnFAO). AnFAO was produced recombinantly in E. coli as maltose-binding protein fusion protein and catalyzes the oxidative deamination of fumonisins, producing hydrogen peroxide. It was found that AnFAO has a high storage and temperature stability. The enzyme was coupled covalently to magnetic particles, and the enzymatically produced H2O2 in the reaction with fumonisin B1 was detected amperometrically in a flow injection system using Prussian blue/carbon electrodes and the custom-made wall-jet flow cell. Fumonisin B1 could be quantified down to 1.5 µM (≈ 1 mg/L). The developed system represents a new approach to detect mycotoxins using enzymes and electrochemical methods.
Ergot alkaloids are a group of toxic compounds, formed by fungi on infested grasses. In 2022, the European Commission set into effect maximum levels for the sum of the twelve major ergot alkaloids in multiple foods. To facilitate the laborious and costly individual quantification of the twelve major ergot alkaloids by HPLC–MS/MS or -FLD, we recently reported a sum parameter method (SPM) for ergot alkaloid quantification. Here, derivatization to lysergic acid hydrazide—a derivative of the mutual ergoline backbone in all ergot alkaloids—allowed simplified determination of all ergot alkaloids in flour via HPLC-FLD. For the measurement of more complex matrices like processed foods, we now developed a MS/MS-based SPM. Two internal standards (IS), isotopically labelled at different positions of the molecule, were synthesized and employed in the MS/MS-measurements. Method performance using either the 13CD3-labelled or the 15N2-labelled IS was evaluated on naturally contaminated rye and wheat flour samples as well as on processed food matrices. Employing the 13CD3-labelled IS leads to lower variances and better consistency with the reference data (obtained by the FLD-based SPM) in flour samples compared to the 15N2-labelled IS. The novel method significantly improves the measurement of ergot alkaloids in complex food matrices, due to their increased selectivity and thus lower interferences. Furthermore, the application of isotope labelled IS obviates the need for time-consuming steps like the determination of recovery rate based, matrix specific correction factors as described in the MS/MS-based European standard method for ergot alkaloid quantification (EN 17425).
Ergot alkaloids are a group of mycotoxins occurring in products derived from various grasses (e.g., rye) and have been regulated in the EU recently. The new maximum levels refer to the sum of the six most common ergot alkaloids in their two stereoisomeric forms in different food matrices. Typically, these twelve compounds are individually quantified via HPLC-MS/MS or -FLD and subsequently summed up to evaluate food safety in a time-consuming process. Since all these structures share the same ergoline backbone, we developed a novel sum parameter method (SPM) targeting all ergot alkaloids simultaneously via lysergic acid hydrazide. After extraction and clean-up, in analogy to the current European standard method EN 17425 (ESM) for ergot alkaloid quantitation, the samples were derivatized by an optimized hydrazinolysis protocol, which allowed quantitative conversion after 20 min at 100 °C. The new SPM was evaluated against another established HPLC-FLD-based method (LFGB) and the HPLC-MS/MS-based ESM using six naturally contaminated rye and wheat matrix reference materials. While the SPM provided comparable values to the ESM, LFGB showed deviating results. Determined recovery rates, limits of detection and quantification of all three employed methods confirm that the new SPM is a promising alternative to the classical approaches for ergot alkaloid screening in food.
A certain group of mycotoxins, the ergot alkaloids, has caused countless deaths throughout human history. They are found in rye and other cereals and ingesting contaminated foods can cause serious health problems. To identify contaminated food exceeding the legal limits for ergot alkaloids, a portable and cost-effective test system is of great interest to the food industry. Rapid analysis can be achieved by screening for a marker compound, for which we chose ergometrine. We developed a magnetic bead-based immunoassay for ergometrine with amperometric detection in a flow injection system using a handheld potentiostat and a smartphone. With this assay a limit of detection of 3 nM (1 μg/L) was achieved. In spiked rye flour, ergometrine levels from 25 to 250 μg/kg could be quantified. All results could be verified by optical detection. The developed assay offers great promise to meet the demand for on-site ergometrine detection in the food industry.
Fumonisins are a class of toxic secondary metabolites produced by various Fusarium species. The two most important producers of fumonisins are F. verticillioides and F. proliferatum but also Aspergillus niger is known to produce fumonisins. Most frequently they occur on maize, but also other grains can be contaminated with this group of mycotoxins. Exposure to fumonisins by dietary intake can have serious health effects on farm animals such as equine leukoencephalomalacia and porcine pulmonary oedema and is associated with neural tube defects and esophageal cancer in humans. Thus, the European Commission sets legal limits for fumonisins in foodstuffs. The detection of fumonisins is frequently performed in laboratories by chromatographic methods, which are costly and require trained personnel. Simplifying the analysis is therefore a major goal using portable detection systems. Electrochemical enzymatic biosensors offer great promise to meet this demand. Here we report for the first time an enzymatic fumonisin sensing approach with amperometric detection. For this purpose, an Aspergillus niger fumonisin amine oxidase (AnFAO) catalyzing the oxidative deamination of fumonisins, producing hydrogen peroxide, was recombinantly produced in E. coli. For the first time, the specific enzyme activity of AnFAO was determined using a horseradish peroxidase-based fluorescence assay. It was found that the specific activity of AnFAO using 20 μM Fumonisin B1 as substrate is higher than for 20 μM Fumonisin B2 with 0.122 U mg-1 and 0.058 U mg-1, respectively. It was possible to show a dependence of enzyme activity with enzyme – and substrate-concentration. For fumonisin B1 detection, the enzyme was coupled covalently to magnetic particles and the enzymatically produced H2O2 was detected amperometrically in a flow injection system using Prussian blue carbon electrodes. The developed method allows to quantify fumonisin B1 concentrations down to 1.5 µM and demonstrates that the recombinantly produced AnFAO was able to deaminate different concentrations of fumonisin even in immobilized form. Thus, this enzyme is well suited to develop an enzyme based electrochemical biosensor for fumonisin contaminated food and feed.
Electrochemical methods make great promise to meet the demand for user-friendly on-site devices for monitoring important parameters. Food industry often runs own lab procedures, e.g., for mycotoxin analysis, but it is a major goal to simplify analysis, linking analytical methods with miniaturized technologies. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, with photometric detection of the horseradish peroxidase (HRP) substrate 3,3’,5,5’-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB), form a good basis for sensitive detection. To provide a straight-forward approach for the miniaturization of the detection step, we have studied the pitfalls of the electrochemical TMB detection. By cyclic voltammetry, it could be shown that TMB electrochemistry is strongly dependent on the pH and the electrode material.
It was found that screen-printed gold electrodes and a very low pH value (pH 1) are well-suited to perform the electrochemical detection of TMB, due to the reversible character of the redox reaction under these conditions. Under these conditions, a good signal stability over several measuring cycles is achieved, providing the basis for analyzing multiple samples. In contrast to this, for carbon screen-printed electrodes, it was found that the signal response has changed after the electrochemical reaction with TMB at pH 1. At moderately acidic conditions (pH 4), neither with carbon nor with gold electrodes a reproducible electrochemical detection of TMB could be achieved.
Based on these findings, we created a smartphone-based, electrochemical, immunomagnetic assay for the detection of ochratoxin A (OTA) and ergometrine in food samples. A competitive assay is performed on magnetic beads using HRP and TMB/H2O2 to generate the signal. Enzymatically oxidized TMB is quantified after addition of H2SO4 by amperometry with screen-printed gold electrodes in a custom-made wall-jet flow cell. The results are in good correlation with the established photometric detection method, providing a solid basis for sensing of further analytes in HRP-based assays using the newly developed miniaturized smartphone-based, electrochemical, immunomagnetic assay.