Method, system and devices for the assay and detection of biochemical molecules

1. A colorimetric assay system which is designed to measure the presence or concentration of a biochemical analyte in a sample by a color change which is indicative of the presence or concentration of the analyte, wherein the system comprises,

(a) an oxidase enzyme capable of oxidizing the analyte by removing electrons from the analyte without involving oxygen in the reaction, thereby yielding a reduced enzyme,

(b) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is oxygen, having a half cell reduction potential greater than that of the reduced enzyme, wherein the electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner, and

(c) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme and changing color in a visible range upon reduction, wherein the change of color is less than one equivalent of color per equivalent of analyte oxidized and is indicative of the presence or the concentration of the analyte to be determined.

2. The colorimetric assay system of claim 1 wherein the electron acceptor is capable of directly accepting the electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner.

3. The colorimetric assay system of claim 1 wherein the analyte is cholesterol and the enzyme is cholesterol oxidase.

4. The colorimetric assay system of claim 3 wherein the chromogen is Azure B.

5. A colorimetric assay system which is designed to measure the presence or concentration of a biochemical analyte by a color change which is determinative of the presence of concentration of the analyte, wherein the system comprises:

(a) an oxidase enzyme capable of electron transferase activity with the analyte and capable of oxidizing the analyte by removing electrons from the analyte without involving oxygen in the reaction, thereby yielding a reduced enzyme,

(b) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons derived from the reduced enzyme and is capable of changing color in a visible range upon reduction, the color change of the reduced chromogen being detectable and determinative of the presence or concentration of the analyte to be determined, and

(c) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is not oxygen having a half cell potential greater than the reduced enzyme, which electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons derived from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner, and advantageously competes over any oxygen present to oxidize the reduced enzyme, and

(d) an electron transfer agent which promotes the transfer of electrons from the reduced enzyme to the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both.

6. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron transfer agent is selected from the group consisting of flavins, phenazines, phenothiazines, pheoxazines, indophenols, substituted 1,4-benzoquinones and indamins.

7. The colorimetric assay system of claim 6 wherein the electron transfer agent is a flavin selected from the group consisting of riboflavin, alloxazine and lumichrome.

8. The colorimetric assay system of claim 6 in which the electron transfer agent is a phenothiazine selected from the group consisting of phenothiazine radical cation, thionine, azure A, azure B, azure C, methylene blue, methylene green and toluidine blue.

9. The colorimetric assay system of claim 6 wherein the electron transfer agent is a phenazine selected from the group consisting of phenazine, phenazine methosulfate, phenazine ethosulfate, and safranine.

10. The colorimetric assay system of claim 6 in which the electron transfer agent is a phenothiazine selected from the group consisting of basic blue 3 and brilliant cresyl blue.

11. The colorimetric assay system of claim 6 in which the electron transfer agent is a substituted 1,4-benzoquinone selected from the group consisting of TFBQ, MMBQ, HMBQ, HMMBQ, DMBQ, DMMBQ and CCBQ.

12. The colorimetric assay system of claim 6 in which the electron transfer agent is an indamin selected from the group consisting of Bindschedler's green and phenylene blue.

13. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 in which the enzyme is cholesterol oxidase and the analyte is cholesterol.

14. The colorimetric assay system of claim 7 in which the electron transfer agent is DCIP.

15. The colorimetric assay system of claim 14 in which the enzyme is choline oxidase and the analyte is choline.

16. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 in which the electron acceptor competes with the chromogen for electrons from the enzyme, either retarding reduction of the chromogen and thereby causing the color change to be gradual, or preventing reduction of the chromogen until the non-reduced electron acceptor is depleted and an abrupt color change occurs, the intensity of the gradual color change being linearly proportional to the concentration of the analyte, the occurrence of the abrupt color change being determinative of the presence or absence of the analyte below or above a concentration to be determined.

17. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron transfer agent is phenothiazine, the chromogen is INT and the electron acceptor is ferric chelate.

18. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron transfer agent is PMS, the chromogen is MTT and the electron acceptor is ferricyanide.

19. The colorimetric assay system of claim 18 in which the enzyme is alcohol oxidase and the analyte is alcohol.

20. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the analyte is cholesterol, the enzyme is cholesterol oxidase, the electron transfer agent is selected from the group consisting of phenothiazine radical, phenoxazine, PMS and a substituted 1,4-benzoquinone, the electron acceptor is selected from the group consisting of K.sub.2 IrCl.sub.6, ferric chelates, ferricyanide, and NaIO.sub.4 and the chromogen is a tetrazolium salt compatible with the electron acceptor, and wherein the assay system is analog to digital.

21. The colorimetric assay system of claim 20 wherein the substituted 1,4-benzoquinone electron transfer agent is selected from the group consisting of TFBQ, MMBQ, DMMBQ and CCBQ.

22. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the analyte is cholesterol, the enzyme is cholesterol oxidase, the electron transfer agent is selected from the group consisting of phenothiazine radical cation, phenoxazine, phenazine methosulfate and a substituted 1,4-benzoquinone, the electron acceptor is tartrazine, and the chromogen is a tetrazolium salt compatible with the electron acceptor, and wherein the assay system is analog to analog.

23. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 in which the oxidase is selected from the group consisting of an oxidase requiring a flavin coenzyme and an oxidase containing a pteridine coenzyme.

24. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the oxidase contains a reversible oxidizable dithiol group at its active site.

25. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the oxidase contains non-heme iron in its reactive center.

26. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron transfer agent promotes the transfer of electrons to both the chromogen and the electron acceptor.

27. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the reduced chromogen has a millimolar extinction coefficient in excess of 10.

28. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron acceptor is capable of efficient direct interaction with the enzyme and the electron transfer agent promotes the transfer of electrons to the chromogen.

29. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the chromogen is capable of efficient direct interaction with the enzyme and the electron transfer agent promotes the transfer of electrons to the electron acceptor.

30. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both the electron acceptor and the chromogen are capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme and from electron transfer agent, wherein the electron transfer agent increases the rate of electron transfer, thereby reducing the amount of enzyme needed to achieve a desired rate.

31. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the analyte is glucose, and the enzyme is glucose oxidase.

32. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the electron transfer agent and the electron acceptor are a hybrid phenothiazine radical cation, and the chromogen is MTT.

33. The colorimetric assay system of claim 32 wherein the phenothiazine radical cation is prepared from phenothiazine and an electron acceptor oxidizing agent selected from the group consisting of K.sub.2 IrCl.sub.6, NaIO.sub.4, and ferric chelates.

34. The colorimetric assay system of claim 33 wherein the ferric chelate is selected from the group consisting of ferricyanide, ferric EDTA, ferric citrate, ferric oxalate, ferric acetylacetonate, ferric bipyridyl, nitroferricyanide and pentacyanoamino ferrate (III).

35. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the assay system is analog to analog and wherein the color change is directly proportional to the concentration of analyte to be measured.

36. The colorimetric assay system of claim 35 wherein the electron acceptor is selected from the group consisting of tartrazine, TFBQ, 2,5,-dihydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone and 2-cyclohexyl-5-hydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone and the chromogen is a tetrazolium salt.

37. The colorimetric assay system of claim 35 wherein the biochemical analyte is bilirubin and the enzyme is bilirubin oxidase.

38. The colorimetric assay system of claim 35 wherein the analyte is cholesterol and the enzyme is cholesterol oxidase.

39. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5, further comprising the the biochemical analyte, the presence or concentration of which is to be measured.

40. The colorimetric assay system of claim 39 wherein the analyte is selected from the group consisting of ethanol, methanol, glucose, lactose, galactose, lactate, pyruvate, oxalate, ketones, albumin, triglycerides, cholesterol, bilirubin, hemoglobin, chlorine, oxalic acid, glycerol, lactic acid, pyruvic acid, ascorbic acid and uric acid, and the enzyme is an oxidase capable of oxidizing the analyte.

41. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the oxidase is not capable of oxidizing the analyte as initially present, and wherein the assay system further comprises an enzyme or series of enzymes capable of converting the analyte to a product which can be oxidized by the oxidase.

42. The colorimetric assay system of claim 41 wherein the analyte is triglyceride, the enzyme capable of converting the analyte to a product which can be oxidized by the oxidase is a lipase, and the oxidase is glycerol oxidase.

43. The colorimetric assay system of claim 41 wherein the analyte is esterified cholesterol, the enzyme capable of converting the analyte to a product which can be oxidized by the oxidase is an enzyme with cholesterol esterase activity, and the oxidase is cholesterol oxidase.

44. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein the color change is a change from a colorless state to a colored stat in the visible range.

45. The colorimetric assay system of claim 5 wherein an additional electron transfer agent is added to promote the efficient transfer of electrons from any reduced chromogen to the electron acceptor.

46. The colorimetric assay system of claim 45 wherein the analyte is in a multi-phase composition and the components of the assay system partition differentially between the phases, and the additional electron transfer agent promotes the flow of electrons from reduced chromogen or electron transfer agent in one phase to the electron acceptor in another phase.

47. The colorimetric assay system of claim 46 wherein the multi-phase composition comprises micellar and ionic aqueous phases.

48. The colorimetric assay system of claim 47 wherein the micellar phase comprises lipoprotein particles and the aqueous phase comprises the aqueous component of blood.

49. The colorimetric assay system of claim 45 wherein the electron acceptor/electron transfer agent is a hybrid.

50. The colorimetric assay system of claim 45 wherein the electron transfer agent is phenazine methosulfate, the electron acceptor is ferricyanide, the chromogen is a tetrazolium salt and the electron transfer agent between the chromogen and the electron acceptor is phenoxazine.

51. A colorimetric assay system which is designed to measure the presence or concentration of an oxidase enzyme in a sample by a color change which is indicative of the presence or concentration of the oxidase, wherein the system comprises,

(a) a substrate which the oxidase is capable of oxidizing by removing electrons from the substrate without involving oxygen in the reaction, wherein the electrons are transferred to an electron acceptor, and wherein the electron acceptor is not oxygen,

(b) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is not oxygen, having a half cell reduction potential greater than that of the reduced enzyme, wherein the electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner,

(c) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme and changing color in a visible range upon reduction, wherein the change of color is less than one equivalent of color per equivalent of substrate oxidized and is indicative of the presence or the concentration of the oxidase to be determined, and

(d) an electron transfer agent which promotes the transfer of electrons from the reduced enzyme to the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both the electron acceptor and the chromogen.

52. A diagnostic colorimetric assay device which is designed to measure the concentration of a biochemical analyte in a sample by developing a color signal when the analyte is at or above a threshold concentration and by the absence of a color signal when the concentration of the analyte is below the threshold, wherein the device comprises:

(a) physical support means,

(b) an oxidase enzyme capable of oxidizing the analyte by removing electrons from the analyte without involving oxygen in the reaction, thereby yielding a reduced enzyme,

(c) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is oxygen, having a half cell reduction potential greater than that of the reduced enzyme, wherein the electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner,

(d) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme and changing color in a visible range upon reduction, wherein the change of color is less than one equivalent of color per equivalent of analyte oxidized and is indicative of the concentration of the analyte to be determined, and

(e) an electron transfer agent which promotes the transfer of electrons from the reduced enzyme to the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both the electron acceptor and the chromogen.

53. The device of claim 52 wherein the physical support means is a multi-layer dry film or gel situated inside a controlled volume capillary.

54. The device of claim 52 which further comprises a sampling means.

55. The device of claim 54 wherein the sampling means is a lancet for sampling blood.

56. A method for measuring the presence or the concentration of a biochemical analyte in a sample by the development of a color change wherein the method comprises:

(a) contacting the sample with an assay system comprising

(i) an oxidase enzyme capable of oxidizing the analyte by removing electrons from the analyte without involving oxygen in the reaction, thereby yielding a reduced enzyme,

(ii) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is oxygen, having a half cell reduction potential greater than that of the reduced enzyme, wherein the electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner,

(iii) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme and changing color in a visible range upon reduction, wherein the change of color is less than one equivalent of color per equivalent of analyte oxidized and is indicative of the concentration of the analyte to be determined, and

(iv) an electron transfer agent which promotes the transfer of electrons from the reduced enzyme to the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both the electron acceptor and the chromogen,

(b) incubating to permit oxidation of the analyte, and

(c) detecting a color change resulting from reduction of the chromogen, wherein a visible color change is indicative of the presence of the analyte or a concentration of the analyte above a predetermined threshold and wherein the absence of a visible color change is indicative of the absence of the analyte or a concentration of the analyte below a predetermined threshold.

57. A method for measuring the presence or the concentration of an oxidase enzyme in a sample by the development of a color change wherein the color change is indicative of the presence or concentration of the oxidase, wherein the method comprises:

(a) contacting the sample with an assay system comprising

(i) a substrate which the oxidase is capable of oxidizing by removing electrons from the substrate without involving oxygen in the reaction, wherein the electrons are transferred to an electron acceptor, and wherein the electron acceptor is not oxygen,

(ii) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is not oxygen, having a half cell reduction potential greater than that of the reduced enzyme, wherein the electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner,

(iii) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme and changing color in a visible range upon reduction, wherein the change of color is less than one equivalent of color per equivalent of substrate oxidized and is indicative of the concentration of the substrate to be determined, and

(iv) an electron transfer agent which promotes the transfer of electrons from the reduced enzyme to the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both the electron acceptor and the chromogen,

(b) incubating to permit the oxidation of the substrate, and

(c) detecting a color change resulting from reduction of the chromogen, wherein a visible color change is indicative of the presence of the oxidase or a concentration of the oxidase above a predetermined threshold and wherein the absence of a visible color change is indicative of the absence of the oxidase or a concentration of the oxidase below a predetermined threshold.

58. The colorimetric assay system of claim 39, further comprising a reactant which reacts with the analyte to convert the analyte to a product in situ, and an oxidase capable of oxidizing the product.

59. The colorimetric assay system of claim 49 wherein the electron acceptor/electron transfer agent hybrid is phenothiazine radical cation, the electron transfer agent between the enzyme and the chromogen is DMMBQ, and the electron transfer agent between the chromogen and the electron acceptor is TFBQ.

60. A colorimetric assay system which is designed to measure the presence or concentration of a biochemical analyte in a sample by a color change which is determinative of the presence or concentration of the analyte, which system comprises:

(a) a heme- or copper-containing protein capable of oxidizing the analyte by removing electrons from the analyte without involving oxygen in the reaction thereby yielding a reduced protein,

(b) a chromogen which is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced protein and is capable of changing color in a visible range upon reduction, the change of the reduced chromogen being detectable and determinative of the presence or concentration of the analyte to be determined, and

(c) a non-chromogenic electron acceptor which is not oxygen, having a half cell potential greater than the reduced enzyme, wherein the electron acceptor is capable of accepting electrons from the reduced enzyme in a functionally irreversible manner, and

(d) an electron transfer agent which promotes the transfer of electrons from the reduced enzyme to the electron acceptor, the chromogen, or both.

61. The colorimetric assay system of claim 60, wherein the heme- or copper-containing protein is selected from the group consisting of serum monoamine oxidase, liver dopamine hydroxylase, hemocyanin, laccase, uricase, phenolase, transsulferase, cerebrocuprein, erythrocyprein, hepatocuprein, plastocyanin, dopamine-2-hydroxylase, liver aryl-4-hydroxylase, liver naphthalene hydroxylase, alkoxyaryl hydroxylase and fatty acid desaturase.