A MICROBIAL SENSOR FOR 2-ETHOXYPHENOL

An amperometric biosensor using bacterial cells as the biological component was developed for the determination of 2-ethoxyphenol. The measurement was based on the respiratory activity of Rhodococcus rhodochrous strain 116 cells. This bacterium grew on 2-ethoxyphenol as the sole source of organic carbon, under induction of cytochrome P450RR1, a monooxygenase specific for 2-ethoxyphenol. Cultivation of bacteria was optimized to harvest cells with maximum concentration of the oxygen-consuming substrate-specific enzyme system. Xenobiotics and natural organic compounds were tested as substrates for the biosensor. The system was calibrated for 2-ethoxyphenol. The linear range of detection for 2-ethoxyphenol was between 0.05 and 0.4 mM.