Walter Thavarajah, A. Silverman, Matthew S. Verosloff, N. Kelley-Loughnane, M. Jewett, J. Lucks
{"title":"Point-of-Use Detection of Environmental Fluoride via a Cell-Free Riboswitch-Based Biosensor","authors":"Walter Thavarajah, A. Silverman, Matthew S. Verosloff, N. Kelley-Loughnane, M. Jewett, J. Lucks","doi":"10.1101/712844","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Advances in biosensor engineering have enabled the design of programmable molecular systems to detect a range of pathogens, nucleic acids, and chemicals. Here, we engineer and field-test a biosensor for fluoride, a major groundwater contaminant of global concern. The sensor consists of a cell-free system containing a DNA template that encodes a fluoride-responsive riboswitch regulating genes that produce a fluorescent or colorimetric output. Individual reactions can be lyophilized for long-term storage and detect fluoride at levels above 2 parts per million, the EPA’s most stringent regulatory standard, in both laboratory and field conditions. Through onsite detection of fluoride in a real-world water source, this work provides a critical proof-of-principle for the future engineering of riboswitches and other biosensors to address challenges for global health and the environment.","PeriodicalId":72407,"journal":{"name":"bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"2019-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"92","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1101/712844","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"","JCRName":"","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 92
Abstract
Advances in biosensor engineering have enabled the design of programmable molecular systems to detect a range of pathogens, nucleic acids, and chemicals. Here, we engineer and field-test a biosensor for fluoride, a major groundwater contaminant of global concern. The sensor consists of a cell-free system containing a DNA template that encodes a fluoride-responsive riboswitch regulating genes that produce a fluorescent or colorimetric output. Individual reactions can be lyophilized for long-term storage and detect fluoride at levels above 2 parts per million, the EPA’s most stringent regulatory standard, in both laboratory and field conditions. Through onsite detection of fluoride in a real-world water source, this work provides a critical proof-of-principle for the future engineering of riboswitches and other biosensors to address challenges for global health and the environment.