An immunochemical method for simultaneous analysis of cross-reacting analytes is presented. We demonstrate the general principle using triazine herbicides as the model system. The analysis is based on a combination of individual enzyme immunoassays (immunoarray) for triazine herbicides using antibodies with different cross-reactivity patterns towards the selected analytes. The assay signals obtained can be mathematically evaluated to estimate concentrations of each analyte out of a ternary or quaternary mixture. The mathematical model utilizes an extension of the empirical four parameter log-logistic fit. Using mono-and polyclonal antibodies it was possible to quantify the four analytes atrazine, simazine, cyanazine, and prometon in the low to sub-ppb range simultaneously.

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The Fab region of an IgG2b antibody (AM7B2.1) reactive to the herbicide atrazine was cloned into a plasmid vector using the polymerase chain reaction and two sets of degenerate oligonucleotide primers designed to mimic the amino acid variation at the N-termini of kappa L-chains and gamma H-chains. These primers also provide a secretion signal fused precisely to the antibody gene sequence for secretion of the mature antibody. A further set of universal oligonucleotide primers was developed for the direct sequencing of the VH and CH1 regions of gamma H-chains and the VL and CL regions of kappa L-chains without subcloning and were used to determine the sequence of this antibody. The kappa L-chain was found to not possess a conserved Cys residue at position 23 and the implications of this observation are discussed. The cloned genes were expressed in Escherichia coli using a commercially available T7 RNA polymerase-based plasmid. The clones were also expressed in a T7 RNA polymerase-based system containing an attenuated version of the T7 RNA polymerase promoter, plus a lac promoter placed in an antisense orientation, to enhance plasmid stability. The expressed products were confirmed as atrazine reactive by binding to an atrazine derivative conjugated with alkaline phosphatase.

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