title: Computer-readable DNAzyme assay on disc for ppb-level lead detection.
abstract: A method for the convenient detection of lead at the parts-per-billion (ppb)-level has been developed; it uses a conventional compact disc (CD) as the platform for preparing DNAzyme assays and an unmodified optical drive of ordinary desktop/laptop computers as the readout device. In particular, by immobilization of Pb(2+)-specific DNAzyme sensing constructs on the "transparent side" of a conventional CD-R via mild surface reactions, the Pb(2+) concentration can be determined by a free diagnostic program that checks the error distribution on the CD (i.e., it extracts the number of errors in a prerecorded audio file). The reading errors increase monotonically over a wide range of Pb(2+) concentrations (from 10 nM to 1 mM), and the selectivity is confirmed by testing several other divalent cations (Zn(2+), Ba(2+), Mg(2+), Ca(2+), Cu(2+), and Hg(2+)).
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Honglun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Lily M L
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Ou
authors.forename: Yourui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Suo
authors.forename: Hua-Zhong
authors.initials: HZ
authors.lastname: Yu
mesh_terms: D021881:DNA, Catalytic / Q000737:chemistry*; D007854:Lead / Q000032:analysis*; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D021881:DNA, Catalytic; D007854:Lead