Novel use of a whole cell E. coli bioreporter as a urinary exposure biomarker.
Bacterial bioreporters have substantial potential for contaminant assessment but their real world application is currently impaired by a lack of sensitivity. Here, we exploit the bioconcentration of chemicals in the urine of animals to facilitate pollutant detection. The shore crab Carcinus maenas was exposed to the organic contaminant 2-hydroxybiphenyl, and urine was screened using an Escherichia coli-based luciferase gene (luxAB) reporter assay specific to this compound. Bioassay measurements differentiated between the original contaminant and its metabolites, quantifying bioconcentration factors of up to one hundred-fold in crab urine. Our results reveal the substantial potential of using bacterial bioreporter assays in real-time monitoring of biological matricesto determine exposure histories, with wide ranging potential for the in situ measurement of xenobiotics in risk assessments and epidemiology.
Lewis
Ceri
C
School of Biosciences, Hatherly Laboratories, University of Exeter, Prince of Wales Road, Exeter, UK. c.n.lewis@exeter.ac.uk
Beggah
Siham
S
Pook
Chris
C
Guitart
Carlos
C
Redshaw
Clare
C
van der Meer
Jan Roelof
JR
Readman
James W
JW
Galloway
Tamara
T
D000818:Animals; D001681:Biological Assay / Q000379:methods*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000652:urine; D003386:Brachyura / Q000378:metabolism; D002138:Calibration; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D014556:Urine / Q000737:chemistry*
D015415:Biomarkers; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; C004369:2-phenylphenol