Scientists at a Spanish university have developed a portable bio-sensor capable of detecting dangerous herbicides as well as antibiotics in food. The miniature sensor works more quickly and is cheaper than current testing methods, which use expensive and bulky equipment that is confined to laboratories. Herbicides like atrazine, which can cause water contamination and lasting damage to the environment, could be detected instantly onsite. This and other bio-substances, such as antibiotics which make their way into milk, are commonly used in agriculture, but are controlled by the European Community. The sensor could make policing the use of substances much easier and more effective.
[via Eurek Alert and vegetarianorganiclife.com]
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The biosensor, developed at the the Universitat Autעnoma de Barcelona, uses a detection technique which mimics our own immune system. Antibodies inside the sensor hook onto contaminating particles which are attracted to the surface of a transductor. This converts contact with the antibodies into electrical signals which give the concentration of contaminants in a sample. The system has been tested successfully to detect pesticides in samples of drinking water and commercial orange juice, as well as traces of antibiotics in cow's milk.
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