Development of ERE/DRE-dual CALUX bioassays system for monitoring estrogen- and dioxin-like persistent organic pollutants

Estrogen- and dioxin-like responsive element mediated Chemically Activated LUciferine gene eXpression (ERE/DRE-dual CALUX) was utilized to develop dual-bioassays for simultaneously determining estrogen and dioxin levels. The devised ERE/DRE-dual CALUX bio-assay system, was applied to the analysis of 103 estrogen and dioxin-related isomers, PAHs, PCBs, and pesticides. The nonylphenol highly induced estrogen-like activity (9.95 times) while benzo(k)fluoranthene, chrysene (zone-refined), and 3,3',4,4',5-pentachlorobiphenyl, highly induced dioxin-like activity (32.23, 42.39, and 34.47 times) respectively as compared with the untreated control. To confirm the validity of the devised ERE/DRE-dual CALUX bio-assay system, we compared this bioassay with high-resolution gas chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRGC/HRMS) to assess five air samples taken in Korea. The correlation coefficient between the ERE/DRE-dual CALUX bioassay system and HRGC/HRMS method showed a good relationship (r ² = 0.92). This study indicates that ERE/DRE-dual CALUX is a simple, high-throughput, valid, and inexpensive bioassay method for screening large numbers of environmental samples.