Refinement of an open-microcavity optical biosensor for bacterial endotoxin test.

The Limulus Amebocyte Lysate (LAL) test is an in vitro assay widely used in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to detect bacterial endotoxins. Endotoxin is a structural component of the cell wall of Gram-negative bacteria, which has serious pathogenic effects in the body and may cause dysfunction of multiple organ systems and increased risk of mortality. To address the growing need for LAL assays due to the increased demand from drug and vaccine manufacturers, we have developed a new LAL assay approach.

Limulus amoebocyte lysate test via an open-microcavity optical biosensor.

Almost since its discovery, Limulus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) testing has been an important part of the pharmaceutical quality control toolkit. It allows for in vitro endotoxin testing, which has replaced tests using animals, such as using rabbits' thermal response to judge pyrogenicity of test samples, thus leading to a less expensive and faster test of parenteral pharmaceuticals and medical devices that contact blood or cerebrospinal fluid. However, limited by the detection mechanisms of the LAL assays currently used in industry, further improvement in their performance is challenging.

Study of the Interactions of Fusarium virguliforme Toxin FvTox1 with Synthetic Peptides by Molecular Simulations and a Label-Free Biosensor.

Fusarium virguliforme is a soil borne pathogen that causes sudden death syndrome (SDS) in soybean plants. This pathogenic disease may result in severe soybean yield suppression and can cause serious economic harm. It has been shown that the FvTox1 toxin produced by the pathogen may be the root cause of foliar SDS.