The development of practical and robust detection methods for pesticides is an important research objective owing to the known toxicity, carcinogenicity, and environmental persistence of these compounds. Pesticides have been found in bodies of water that are located near areas where pesticides are commonly used and easily spread to beaches, lakes, and rivers; affect the species living in those waterways; and harm humans who come into contact with or eat fish from such water. Current detection methods for pesticides rely heavily on mass spectrometry-based techniques, which are often time-consuming and expensive. Recently, a fluorescence-based approach has been developed for the rapid, sensitive, and selective detection of organochlorine pesticides in a variety of water sources across the state of Rhode Island. This method relies on the ability of cyclodextrin to promote analyte-specific fluorescence modulation of a high quantum yield fluorophore when a pesticide is in close proximity, combined with subsequent array-based statistical analyses of the measurable changes in the emission signals. This system operates with high sensitivity (sub-ppm detection limits), selectivity (100% differentiation between structurally similar analytes, such as <i>cis</i> and <i>trans</i> isomers), and general applicability (for different water samples with varying salinity and pH as well as for different water temperatures). The high sensitivity, selectivity, and general applicability show the potential for the development of practically applicable portable detection devices for the detection of pesticides in contaminated marine environments.

Detection of organochlorine pesticides in contaminated marine environments via cyclodextrin-promoted fluorescence modulation

256th National Meeting (2018)

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