“…The interaction between avidin (or streptavindin) and biotin exhibits the strongest known affinity (dissociation constant, K d ∼ 10 15 M −1 ) between a ligand and a protein (Weber et al, 1989). The high specificity of avidin for biotin has resulted in the avidin-biotin system being extensively used in biological science and technology, including affinity-based separation, diagnostic assays and DNA hybridization (Cho et al, 1999;Masarik et al, 2003). Avidin is toxic to many organisms due to its ability to deplete biotin, an essential vitamin (Vitamin H), from their environment (Mock et al, 2003).…”