Highly Sensitive Whole-Cell Mercury Biosensors for Environmental Monitoring.

ABSTRACT: Whole-cell biosensors could serve as eco-friendly and cost-effective alternatives for detecting potentially toxic bioavailable heavy metals in aquatic environments. However, they often fail to meet practical requirements due to an insufficient limit of detection (LOD) and high background noise. In this study, we designed a synthetic genetic circuit specifically tailored for detecting ionic mercury, which we applied to environmental samples collected from artisanal gold mining sites in Peru. We developed two distinct versions of the biosensor, each utilizing a different reporter protein: a fluorescent biosensor (Mer-RFP) and a colorimetric biosensor (Mer-Blue). Mer-RFP enabled real-time monitoring of the culture's response to mercury samples using a plate reader, whereas Mer-Blue was analys

SUBMITTER: Zevallos-Aliaga D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11117708 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature