Ultrasensitive Detection of Hepatotoxic Microcystin Production from Cyanobacteria Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Immunosensor.
Microcystin-LR (MC-LR) is considered the most common hazardous toxin produced during harmful algal blooms. In addition to potential risk of long-term exposure to low concentrations in drinking water, acute toxicity due to MC-LR resulting from algal blooms could result in fatalities in rare cases. Although several methods are currently available to detect MC-LR, development of a low-cost, ultrasensitive measurement method would help limit exposure by enabling early detection and continuous monitoring of MC-LR. Here, we develop a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopic immunosensor for detection and quantification of the hepatotoxic MC-LR toxin in aquatic settings with excellent robustness, selectivity, and sensitivity. We demonstrate that the developed SERS sensor can reach a limit of detection (0.014 μg/L) at least 1 order of magnitude lower and display a linear dynamic detection range (0.01 μg/L to 100 μg/L) 2 orders of magnitude wider in comparison to the commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test. The superior analytical performance of this SERS immunosensor enables monitoring of the dynamic production of MC-LR from a Microcystis aeruginosa culture. We believe that the present method could serve as a useful tool for detection of hepatotoxic microcystin toxins in various aquatic settings such as drinking water, lakes, and reservoirs. Further development of this technique could result in single-cell microcystin resolution or real-time monitoring to mitigate the associated toxicity and economic loss.
['Li|Ming|M|0000-0002-2289-0222', 'Paidi|Santosh Kumar|SK|', 'Sakowski|Eric|E|', 'Preheim|Sarah|S|', 'Barman|Ishan|I|0000-0003-0800-0825']
D015374:Biosensing Techniques D000458:Cyanobacteria D007118:Immunoassay D060106:Lakes D057230:Limit of Detection D008099:Liver D052998:Microcystins D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman D014867:Water
surface-enhanced Raman scattering microcystin-LR toxins algal blooms biosensors