A disposable microbial based biosensor for quality control in milk.

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Biotechnology
• Food Science

Background:

• Current food quality control methods are often time-consuming and require specialized equipment.
• Growing consumer demand for food safety and accurate composition analysis necessitates faster, more efficient methods.
• The emergence of 'synthetic milk' due to urea adulteration poses a significant quality control challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a rapid, reliable, and cost-effective biosensor for urea detection in milk.
• To address the need for improved analytical methods in the food industry.
• To investigate the potential of immobilized urease-producing bacterial biomass for biosensing applications.

Main Methods:

• A novel biosensor was constructed using immobilized urease-yielding bacterial cell biomass from soil.
• The biosensor incorporated an ammonium ion-selective electrode as a potentiometric transducer.
• The Nernst equation principles were applied to relate membrane potential to urea concentration.

Main Results:

• The developed biosensor achieved a rapid response time of as low as 2 minutes for urea detection in milk samples.
• Analysis of milk samples demonstrated good correlation between the biosensor results and a pure enzyme system.
• The biosensor proved effective in identifying urea presence, a marker for synthetic milk.

Conclusions:

• The developed biosensor provides a promising analytical tool for efficient and accurate urea detection in milk.
• This method offers a cost-effective and rapid alternative to traditional wet chemistry techniques for food quality control.
• The biosensor technology holds potential for broader applications in monitoring food adulteration and ensuring safety.