The phase I enzyme known as cytochrome P450 1B1 (CYP1B1) is involved in the metabolism of many endogenous and exogenous compounds, including carcinogens. CYP1B1 is overexpressed in a wide variety of human diseases ranging from diabetes to malignancies, such as invasive breast cancer. Because of its microsomal location in the cell, CYP1B1 could not be measured directly by existing methods but only assessed indirectly via the determination of the catalytic products. We report here a rapid, sensitive piezoimmunosensor for detection of CYP1B1 using single-chain fragment variable antibodies (scFv) as recognition elements and a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) as the transducer. Three anti-CYP1B1 scFvs (designated B-66, D-23, and L-21) were biotinylated and used to capture and specifically detect CYP1B1 from samples in solution. ScFvs are smaller than most commonly used antibodies and can be coated onto QCM surfaces at much higher density to improve sensor sensitivity and specificity. The scFv-QCM biosensors showed excellent sensitivity (detection limit, 2.2 ± 0.9 nM) and specificity with a dissociation constant K d = (1.54 ± 0.59) × 10 −7 M. CYP1B1 were quantitatively detected in normal and malignant cell lysates (e.g., human T47D breast cancer cell microsomes). Results demonstrate that an anti-CYP1B1 scFv-QCM immunosensor could be used to detect P450 enzymes in biological samples.The cytochrome P450 gene superfamily encodes multifunctional phase I enzymes that are involved in the metabolism of many drugs and dietary substances and in the synthesis of steroid hormones and other extracellular lipid signaling molecules. 1 Not surprisingly, cytochrome P450s (CYPs) have been implicated to play important roles in a wide variety of human diseases ranging from diabetes to malignancies. 2 Because of their important functions in normal physiology and disease, it would be desirable to measure CYPs. To date, CYPs have been visualized by immunocytochemistry and localized within the microsomal (endoplasmic reticulum) compartment of the cell. However, attempts to quantitate the concentration of CYPs have been unsuccessful with existing methods because of the location in the complex microsomal membrane, which consists of a mixture of proteins and lipids containing the embedded CYPs. Thus, individual CYPs have not been measured directly by existing methods but only assessed indirectly via the determination of their catalytic products.In the present study, we have developed a novel analytical approach, which was based on a piezoimmunosensor, to detect and quantitate individual CYPs in cellular extracts. As a prototype, we selected one member of the CYP family, CYP1B1, because it has been implicated in the estrogen carcinogenesis of breast cancer, in which it is overexpressed. 3,4 Several studies have also targeted CYP1B1 as a universal tumor antigen, using specific cytotoxic T cells for *To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: zeng@oakland.edu., Tel: 248-370-2881. Fax: 248-370-2321 NIH Public Access The establish...