Synthesis and Identification of the Ciprofloxacin Hapten-Protein Conjugates

In order to generate the specific antibody of small molecular hapten-ciprofloxacin for detecting the Ciprofloxacin residues in edible animal tissues. A modified Carbodiimide coupling method was developed to obtain the immunogenic conjugates through coupling ciprofloxacin with bovine serum albumin in five different proportions. The conjugates were characterized and verified by electrophoresis,the trinitro-benzene-sulfonic acid (TNBS) method and ultraviolet spectra scanning. A quantitative analysis of the density of ciprofloxacin-bovine serum albumin conjugates suggested that a high conjugate density 30:1 could be obtained in the optimized conditions. By immunizing the mice, the antibody showed high sensitivity toward ciprofloxacin with an IC50of 4.69 ng/ml. This study confirmed a practical approach for the ciprofloxacin-bovine serum albumin conjugates, through which the high potent antisera specific for ciprofloxacin hapten can be produced for immunoassay.