Continuous colorimetric assay for acetylcholinesterase and inhibitor screening with gold nanoparticles.
We report herein a new colorimetric assay method for acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity and its inhibitor screening by making use of the following facts: (1) the aggregation of gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) results in the red-shift of the plasmon absorption due to interparticle plasmon interactions and (2) AChE can catalyze the hydrolysis of acetylthiocholine into thiocholine which can induce the aggregation of Au-NPs. With this convenient method, the activity of AChE with a concentration as low as 0.6 mU/mL can be assayed. Moreover, this assay method is also useful for screening inhibitors of AChE. Given its simplicity and easy-operation, this method may extend to high-throughput screening of AChE inhibitors and relevant drug discovery.
Wang
Ming
M
Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, Organic Solids Laboratory, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
Gu
Xinggui
X
Zhang
Guanxin
G
Zhang
Deqing
D
Zhu
Daoben
D
D000110:Acetylcholinesterase / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D003124:Colorimetry / Q000379:methods*; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical / Q000379:methods*; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D015394:Molecular Structure
D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D006046:Gold; D000110:Acetylcholinesterase