Indirect Competitive Enzyme Immunoassay for Tetrodotoxin Using a Biotin-Avidin System
Abstract An indirect competitive enzyme immunoassay was developed to determine tetrodotoxin (TTX). Antiserum against TTX was demonstrated in rabbits immunized with TTX-keyhole limpet hemocyanin conjugate. In this assay, TTX-bovine serum albumin was coated on the microtiter plate, which was incubated with standard TTX and biotinylated immunoglobulin G from antiserum. The amount of antibody bound on the surface of wells was determined by the reaction of avidin-peroxidase conjugate with its substrate. The minimal detection level of TTX ranged from 5 to 25 pg/assay. The standard curve was linear between 0.25 and 50 ng/assay. A good correlation (r= 0.974) for TTX was also obtained between this indirect competitive enzyme immunoassay and the mouse bioassay.