Making bio-sense of toxicity: new developments in whole-cell biosensors.
Bacterial whole-cell biosensors are very useful for toxicity measurements of various samples. Semi-specific biosensors, containing fusions of stress-regulated promoters and reporter genes, have several advantages over the traditional, general biosensors that are based on constitutively expressed reporter genes. Furthermore, semi-specific biosensors are constantly being refined to lower their sensitivity and, in combination, are able to detect a wide range of toxic agents. However, the requirement for a positive response of these biosensors to toxicants can result in false-negative responses. The application of in situ inoculation and single-cell detection, combined with the introduction of new reporter genes and refined detection equipment, could lead to the extensive use of semi-specific, stress-responsive biosensors for toxicity estimations in the future.
Sørensen
Søren J
SJ
Department of Microbiology, University of Copenhagen, Sølvgade 83H, 1307 Copenhagen K, Denmark. sjs@bi.ku.dk
Burmølle
Mette
M
Hansen
Lars H
LH
D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001681:Biological Assay; D015374:Biosensing Techniques; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D013014:SOS Response, Genetics; D018675:Toxicity Tests / Q000379:methods*