Browsing by Author "Mtweve, David"

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    Development of a Field Deployable Handheld Electrochemical Biosensor for Detection of Aflatoxin B1 in Grains
    (NM-AIST, 2025-01) Mtweve, David
    Aflatoxins (AFs) are highly toxic compounds, with Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) being the most harmful, necessitating rapid and reliable on-site detection to ensure food safety. This study introduces a portable electrochemical biosensor for detecting AFB1 in grains, leveraging a screen-printed electrode (SPE) pretreated with sulfuric acid and modified with bovine serum albumin (BSA). The BSA serves as a scaffold for immobilizing anti-AFB1 antibodies via terminal carboxylic groups, reducing nonspecific binding. The biosensor employs Differential Pulse Voltammetry (DPV) for detection, using a wireless portable potentiostat to transmit results to a mobile device via Bluetooth. The system achieved a Limit of Blank (LoB) of 1.67 ng/mL, a Limit of Detection (LoD) of 2.058 ng/mL, and a dynamic range of 1–20 ng/mL, demonstrating high sensitivity. Specificity and sensitivity were validated against the ELISA gold standard, with a correlation coefficient of 0.92 and a significant p-value of 0.04, indicating robust diagnostic performance. Real-sample testing in maize and peanut matrices showed recovery rates of 90–105%, confirming its accuracy in diverse food systems. The biosensor’s ability to differentiate AFB1 from fumonisin further highlights its selectivity. These findings position the developed biosensor as a cost-effective, portable, and highly reliable tool for on- site mycotoxin monitoring in food safety applications.