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Toxicity assessment using different bioassays and microbial biosensors.
Sedky H A Hassan1, Steven W Van Ginkel2, Mohamed A M Hussein3
1Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Assiut University, New Valley Branch, 72511 Al-Kharja, Egypt.
Environment International
|April 13, 2016
Summary
Microbial biosensors offer a rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective method for environmental pollution monitoring. This review highlights their use in toxicity assessment across various applications.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science and Ecotoxicology
- Analytical Chemistry
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Environmental pollution monitoring requires effective toxicity assessment of water and sediment.
- Biological assays provide rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective ecotoxicity evaluation.
- Various organisms, from fish to microbes, are used in toxicity testing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review microbial biosensors as analytical devices.
- To explore their applications in environmental, food, and biomedical fields.
- To summarize techniques and uses in assessing diverse environments.
Main Methods:
- Focus on microbial biosensors for toxicity assessment.
- Common techniques include amperometry, potentiometry, conductometry, voltammetry, microbial fuel cells, fluorescence, bioluminescence, and colorimetry.
- Review of existing literature and case studies.
Main Results:
- Microbial biosensors are versatile tools for ecotoxicity assessment.
- Diverse sensing techniques enable sensitive detection of pollutants.
- Successful applications demonstrated across environmental matrices.
Conclusions:
- Microbial biosensors are valuable for rapid and cost-effective toxicity evaluation.
- They offer significant potential for environmental monitoring and risk assessment.
- Further development and application of microbial biosensors are encouraged.
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