Hatzios Lab published in Cell Chemical Biology

“A propeptide-based biosensor for the selective detection of Vibrio cholerae using an environment-sensitive fluorophore”

Authors: Alicia A. DeColli, Isabel M. Koolik, Anna B. Seminara, and Stavroula K. Hatzios

Proteases are attractive biomarkers for diagnostic applications, but identifying peptide substrates specific to a targeted pathogen is challenging. DeColli et al. demonstrate that the propeptide domain of a secreted bacterial protease can be engineered into a cleavage-based biosensor of the cholera pathogen Vibrio cholerae. By conjugating the propeptide domain to an environment-sensitive fluorophore, they developed a fluorescent probe that enables the species-specific detection of V. cholerae in mixed bacterial cultures without nonspecific cleavage by other bacteria or intestinal cells.