Photoelectrochemical immunoassay of aflatoxin B in foodstuff based on amorphous TiO and CsPbBr perovskite nanocrystals.

Abstract

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) pollution is one of the most serious problems for food safety. In this paper, a split-type photoelectrochemical (PEC) immunoassay was designed for sensitive detection of AFB1 in foodstuffs by using amorphous TiO2 with all-inorganic perovskite CsPbBr3 nanocrystals (CsPbBr3/a-TiO2). The a-TiO2 layer not only improved the stability of CsPbBr3 nanocrystals, but also facilitated charge transfer, which resulted in the increasing photocurrent of the nanocomposites. Initially, a competitive-type enzyme immunoreaction was executed on a high-binding microplate between the analyte and alkaline phosphatase (ALP)-labeled AFB1-bovine serum albumin (AFB1-BSA) conjugate. Accompanied by the formation of the immunocomplex, the carried ALP triggered enzymatic hydrolysis to generate ascorbic acid (AA, as an electron donor) for increasing the photocurrent of the CsPbBr3/a-TiO2-modified electrode. Coupling with the competitive enzyme immunoassay, the photocurrent of the modified electrode decreased with the increase of target AFB1 concentration in a dynamic working range from 0.01 ng mL-1 to 15 ng mL-1 with a limit of detection (LOD) of 2.8 pg mL-1 under optimum conditions. Furthermore, the photoelectrochemical immunoassay was also utilized to detect AFB1 in peanut and corn samples, giving acceptable accuracy in comparison with the referenced AFB1 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method.