A team writing in Microchimica Acta has built a label-free dual-mode aptasensor for zearalenone, a Fusarium-produced mycotoxin that contaminates corn, wheat, and other cereal crops worldwide. The sensor combines exonuclease-I cleavage with a PtNWs/MXene nanozyme to deliver both colorimetric and electrochemical readouts, improving sensitivity and reducing false positives compared with single-readout assays.
Zearalenone is a non-steroidal estrogenic mycotoxin that binds estrogen receptors in mammals and is a recurring contaminant in livestock feed and human grain products. Improved detection methods are a precondition for tighter food-safety enforcement and exposure research.
The authors validated the sensor in spiked corn flour and beer samples and report a working range that overlaps regulatory limits set by the FDA, EU, and Codex.