This work is aimed towards the generation of enzyme arrays on electrochemically active surfaces by taking advantage of the DNA-directed immobilization (DDI) technique. To this end, two different types of horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-DNA conjugates were prepared, either by covalent coupling with a bifunctional cross-linker or by the reconstitution of apo-HRP, that is, HRP lacking its prosthetic heme (protoporphyrin IX) group, with a covalently DNA-modified heme cofactor. Both conjugates were characterized in bulk and also subsequent to their immobilization on gold electrodes through specific DNA hybridization. Electrochemical measurements by using the phenolic mediator ortho-phenylendiamine indicated that, due to the high degree of conformational orientation, the apparent Michaelis-Menten constants of the reconstituted HRP conjugate were lower than those of the covalent conjugate. Due to the reversible nature of DDI, both conjugates could be readily removed from the electrode surface by simple washing and, subsequently, the electrodes could be reloaded with fresh enzymes, thereby restoring the initial amperometric-response activity. Moreover, the specific DNA hybridization allowed us to direct the two conjugates to distinct sites on a microelectrode array. Therefore, the self-assembly and regeneration capabilities of this approach should open the door to the generation of arrays of redox-enzyme devices for the screening of enzymes and their effectors.

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Discriminating wines according to their denomination of origin using cost-effective techniques is something that attracts the attention of different industrial sectors. In search of simplicity, direct UV-visible spectrophotometric techniques and different multivariate statistical techniques are used with admissible results to characterize wine produced in specific regions. However, most of the reported classification methods do not exploit all of the statistical relations in the investigated dataset and are inherently affected by the presence of outliers. The aim of this paper is to test novel classification methods such as support vector machines as a means of improving the classification rate when UV-visible spectrophotometric methods are used to discriminate wines. The advantages of such a discrimination tool are demonstrated when classification rates are compared for a large number of Spanish red and white wines and classification rates above 96% are achieved. The proposed methodology also enables the selection of the most relevant wavelengths for sample discrimination. The proposed methodology also enables the selection of the most relevant wavelengths for sample discrimination.

Kynurenic acid (KYNA) is a product of the tryptophan (TRP) metabolism via the kynurenine pathway (KP). This pathway is activated in neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer´s disease (AD). KYNA is primarily produced by astrocytes and is considered neuroprotective. Thus, altered KYNA levels may suggest an inflammatory response. Very recently, significant increases in KYNA levels were reported in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from AD patients compared with normal controls. In this study, we assessed the accuracy of KYNA in CSF for the classification of patients with AD, cognitively healthy controls, and patients with a variety of other neurodegenerative diseases, including frontotemporal dementia (FTD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). Averaged KYNA concentration in CSF was higher in patients with AD when compared with healthy subjects and with all the other differentially diagnosed groups. There were no significant differences in KYNA levels in CSF between any other neurodegenerative groups and controls. These results suggest a specific increase in KYNA concentration in CSF from AD patients not seen in other neurodegenerative diseases.

The modification of enzymes with multiple single-stranded oligonucleotides opens up a new concept for the development of DNA sensors with enhanced sensitivity. This work describes the generation of reporter sequences labeled with an enzyme for the demonstration of their ability to specifically hybridize and to permit signal amplification by successive hybridization steps. The synthetic pathway for the labeling of GOx with oligonucleotide sequences is based on the oxidation of the glycosidic residues of the enzyme and their covalent binding with 5'-end amine-modified oligonucleotides. Spectrophotometric characterization of these functionalized sequences results in an average number of three linked oligonucleotides per enzyme molecule. Their specificity is demonstrated in both a direct and a sandwich-type hybridization assay. The transduction of the enzyme-linked DNA sensors is based on self-assembled multilayers, including a chemically modified anionic horseradish peroxidase electrochemically connected to a water-soluble cationic poly[(vinylpyridine)Os(bpy)(2)Cl] redox polymer in an electrostatic ordered assembly. The sensing layer is constructed by the covalent binding of the DNA probe over the redox polymer through the 3'-phosphate group, enabling the capture of the target sequence. Upon addition of glucose, hybridization results in the production of H(2)O(2), which readily diffuses to the electrocatalytic assembly, giving rise to a cathodic current at 100 mV vs Ag/AgCl. Hybridization is always performed at room temperature, and after 30 min of incubation, an amperometric response is obtained that is proportional to DNA concentration. The simultaneous sandwich assay enables the quantification of a free-label 44-mer oligonucleotide at 1 nM concentration. Signal amplification is realized by a new hybridization step over the free sequences, giving rise to a dendritic architecture that accumulates enzyme molecules per hybridization event.

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