COMPARISON OF A MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY-BASED ENZYME-LINKED-IMMUNOSORBENT-ASSAY AND GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY FOR THE DETERMINATION OF NICOTINE IN CIGARETTE-SMOKE CONDENSATES

A competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on monoclonal antibodies was developed to measure nicotine in smoke condensates of cigarettes. The ELISA standard curve displays a detection limit of 70 ng/mL and an effective working range of 0.3-4.0 mug of nicotine/mL. Using standard samples, ELISA results compare well with theoretical values (r = 0.997). The suitability of the method for industrial routine application was evaluated by measuring the nicotine concentration in 245 cigarette smoke condensates. When ELISA results were compared with those obtained by gas chromatography, a correlation coefficient r = 0.886 was obtained. The assay allows the specific, precise, and accurate determination of nicotine, without any significant interference from other alkaloids also present in tobacco smoke. Preliminary data suggest that the immunoassay could also be applied to other matrices, e.g., tobacco extracts. ELISA equipment requirements are minimum, simple, and low-cost, and an unskilled person could perform 150 analysis in a working day. On the basis of these features, ELISA is proposed as a promising alternative to instrumental methods for some industrial applications.