STABILIZATION OF DRY IMMOBILIZED ACETYLCHOLINESTERASE ON NITROCELLULOSE MEMBRANE FOR RAPID COLORIMETRIC SCREENING OF ITS INHIBITORS IN WATER AND BIOLOGICAL-FLUIDS

We show the ability of a gelatin and a BSA-trehalose film to convert n ormally fragile dry immobilized acetylcholinesterase enzyme (AchE) int o a stable reagent on nitrocellulose membrane. The remarkable property of the dry immobilized AchE enzyme preparation is its stability when exposed to temperatures as high as 50 degrees C. The proposed method o ffers a rapid, simple, and inexpensive means in a non-laboratory setup for qualitative analytical colorimetric screening of AchE inhibitor r esidues such as pesticides and drugs in water and biological fluids.