CadmiLume: A Novel Smartphone-Based Bioluminescence Color-Tuning Assay and Biosensor for Cadmium and Heavy Metal Detection in Water Samples
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Experimental Design
2.1. Materials
2.2. Equipment
3. Procedure
3.1. Bioluminescent Assay
3.2. Smartphone Photographic Detection
3.2.1. Smartphone Application
3.2.2. Image Analysis and Cadmium Quantification
3.2.3. User Interface and Result Display
4. Results
5. Discussion
6. Concluding Remarks
- Here, we developed an innovative smartphone-based luminescent color assay for cadmium detection and quantification in water samples, which uses a novel cadmium-sensing luciferase, AmyLuc.
- The method provides a fast cell-free hands-on ratiometric biosensor for the field, which, based on the reference cadmium concentration values, can detect cadmium in the range from 20 to 400 ppm.
- The sensitivity of the assay could be extended to 0.02–0.4 ppm upon sample concentration.
- The cellphone-based assay instantly provides images and analysis of numerous samples in the field, which can be exported via telecommunication without the need for expensive and inconvenient equipment.
- Based on the same principle, this assay can also be easily adapted to luminescence colorimetric detection of other analytes, including other heavy metals, such as mercury, depending on the selected metal-sensitive luciferase or pH using pH-sensitive firefly luciferases.
7. Patents
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Viviani, V.R.; Teixeira, M.S.; Pelentir, G.F. CadmiLume: A Novel Smartphone-Based Bioluminescence Color-Tuning Assay and Biosensor for Cadmium and Heavy Metal Detection in Water Samples. Methods Protoc. 2025, 8, 33. https://doi.org/10.3390/mps8020033
Viviani VR, Teixeira MS, Pelentir GF. CadmiLume: A Novel Smartphone-Based Bioluminescence Color-Tuning Assay and Biosensor for Cadmium and Heavy Metal Detection in Water Samples. Methods and Protocols. 2025; 8(2):33. https://doi.org/10.3390/mps8020033
Chicago/Turabian StyleViviani, Vadim R., Murilo S. Teixeira, and Gabriel F. Pelentir. 2025. "CadmiLume: A Novel Smartphone-Based Bioluminescence Color-Tuning Assay and Biosensor for Cadmium and Heavy Metal Detection in Water Samples" Methods and Protocols 8, no. 2: 33. https://doi.org/10.3390/mps8020033
APA StyleViviani, V. R., Teixeira, M. S., & Pelentir, G. F. (2025). CadmiLume: A Novel Smartphone-Based Bioluminescence Color-Tuning Assay and Biosensor for Cadmium and Heavy Metal Detection in Water Samples. Methods and Protocols, 8(2), 33. https://doi.org/10.3390/mps8020033