Quorum sensing is a type of bacterial cell-to-cell signaling that is thought to facilitate cell density dependent regulation of gene expression. The quorum sensing signal, autoinducer-2 (AI-2) is produced by half of studied bacteria, and its progenitor,4,5-dihydroxy-2,3 pentanedione (DPD), exists as an equilibrium of cyclic species, hydrates, and borated adducts that collectively responsible for signaling. Also, AI-2 is linked with various metabolic processes, which makes it an attractive candidate to be used as a biomarker for bacterial infections.Herein, we describe the synthesis of novel FRET-based sensors and their application to the accurate detection of AI-2. These sensors are rely on the selective reaction of the a-dicarbonyl groups with an aromatic ortho-diamino moiety contained within the sensor construct to turn-on fluorescence, which is then transferred to an appended fluorophore for subsequent optical detection. This method of detection avoids interference from overlapping emission from other molecules in the medium since it is dependent upon the distance between the DPD-derived light acceptor and the appended fluorescent reporter. We are developing this technology for the rapid detection of bacteria in a variety of contexts.

Fluorescent sensors for the detection of the inter-species quorum sensing signal, AI-2

244th National Meeting (2012)

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