Synthesis and Characterization of Thermostable Antimicrobial Peptide-DNAzyme Conjugates for the Proof-of-Concept Detection of <i>E. coli</i>.

ABSTRACT: Bacterial infections are a common cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The early detection of pathogens is crucial to minimize health risks, control spread, and prevent outbreaks. Current detection methods are either cultivation-based and time-consuming or rely on sophisticated, costly assays that require specialist equipment, making them unsuitable for rapid and cost-efficient screening, e.g., in food safety. Here, we investigated antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) conjugated to HRP-mimicking DNAzymes as a potentially novel class of broad-spectrum bacterial biosensors. AMPs bind to bacterial cells, and the DNAzyme catalyzes a peroxidase reaction exploitable for sensing applications. We established and optimized a synthesis protocol to prepare AMP-DNAzyme conjugates, synthesized several

SUBMITTER: Mutter N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12903139 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature