{"title":"Advances in fluorescent sensors for trace detection of metal contaminants and agrochemical residues in soil: A comprehensive review","authors":"Hasher Irshad, Khadija, Katrine Qvortrup","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118365","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118365","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Soil contamination by hazardous substances, including heavy metal ions and agrochemical residues such as herbicides, insecticides and fungicides poses a significant threat to environmental safety and human health. Reliable detection methods for trace levels of these contaminants are essential to address the risks associated with their presence in soil.</div></div><div><h3>Scope and approach</h3><div>This review highlights recent advancements in the development of fluorescent sensors for the trace detection of contaminants in soil samples. The discussion encompasses the properties of various fluorescent materials, their selectivity, limit of detection, sensing strategies and mechanisms.</div></div><div><h3>Key findings and conclusions</h3><div>Fluorescent sensors have demonstrated exceptional potential for detecting soil contaminants due to their high sensitivity, specificity, and rapid response. Advances in sensor design, including the development of novel materials and portable detection systems, have significantly improved detection capabilities. Future research should focus on enhancing the reliability of fluorescent signals, developing reusable, portable and user-friendly systems, and improving the applicability of these sensors to real soil analysis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118365"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144696680","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Francisco Antonio Casado-Carmona , Noemí Aranda-Merino , José Manuel Herrero-Martínez , Yolanda Moliner-Martínez , Soledad Cárdenas , Manuel Miró
{"title":"A paradigm shift in sample preparation using sustainable membrane phases: Hype or reality?","authors":"Francisco Antonio Casado-Carmona , Noemí Aranda-Merino , José Manuel Herrero-Martínez , Yolanda Moliner-Martínez , Soledad Cárdenas , Manuel Miró","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118364","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118364","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the field of sample preparation, a vast amount of effort over the past decade has been geared toward the development of sustainable liquid and sorptive phases with green credentials and practicality to solve analytical challenges. Notwithstanding the main types and formats of biodegradable and renewable materials encompass bead and solid-fiber type arrangements, sustainable materials are readily amenable to membrane-based microextraction. In this manuscript, the role of biomembranes and biomembrane composites incorporating nanostructured materials, biomolecules and hydrophobic natural solvents for the isolation and preconcentration of organic and inorganic pollutants based on thin film microextraction, supported liquid-phase microextraction and electromembrane extraction is discussed in detail. Insights into the physicochemical properties that endow these biomembranes with unique features for extraction procedures in environmental, food, and biological matrices along with challenges to make them competitive in terms of analytical properties against synthetic polymer phases are highlighted. The potential of integrating planar biomembranes in automatic flow systems and performing on-site screening protocols with chromogenic polymeric membranes is also underscored.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118364"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144654465","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Chen Wang , Xiaonan Li , Aichen Wang , Junwen Bai , Zhiming Guo
{"title":"Recent advances in terahertz biochemical sensing technology: principles, evolution and applications","authors":"Chen Wang , Xiaonan Li , Aichen Wang , Junwen Bai , Zhiming Guo","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118362","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118362","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Terahertz (THz) waves have demonstrated substantial potential for applications across various fields over more than three decades of development. In particular, THz spectroscopy has emerged as a powerful tool for biochemical detection due to its non-invasive and label-free capability to qualitatively and quantitatively analyze molecular properties. In the development of THz biochemical sensing technology, novel materials, exquisite device architectures, and optimized detection methods have been proposed to overcome performance limitations and broaden their range of applications. To comprehensively sort out these important technological breakthroughs made in recent years, this review is devoted to the main development process and typical application research, mainly including the following aspects of direct substance detection via THz sensing technology, metamaterial-based THz sensing and THz molecular fingerprint sensing. Finally, a summary and future directions for terahertz biochemical sensing technology are presented.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118362"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144563701","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Mass spectrometry insight into environmental chemical exposome and metabolome in the microbiota-gut-brain axis","authors":"Hemi Luan , Zhifan Sun , Ying Zhao , Tiangang Luan","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118361","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118361","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The microbiota–gut–brain axis represents a critical pathway through which health and disease states are influenced by complex interactions between the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract. Environmental exposures play a key role in modulating this axis, with a diverse array of chemical compounds, including both endogenous metabolome and exogenous chemical exposome. Understanding these interactions requires advanced analytical techniques capable of characterizing the large number of compounds involved. Mass spectrometry (MS) has emerged as a cutting-edge tool in this area, offering profound insights into the chemical dynamics of the microbiota–gut–brain axis. MS-based non-targeted analysis have proved valuable in exploring the environmental chemical exposome and its impact on the metabolome. These methods are instrumental in identifying and quantifying a wide range of structurally diverse substances, which traditional targeted analyses might miss. Non-targeted analyses facilitate the discovery of known and unknown pollutants and metabolites, enhancing our understanding of how environmental factors influence metabolic pathways and contribute to health outcomes. This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent advances in mass spectrometry, focusing on non-targeted techniques and their applications in the study of the microbiota-gut-brain axis. It highlights the growing importance of these methodologies in compound discovery and environmental exposure assessment. By integrating findings from cutting-edge research, this review aims to elucidate how mass spectrometry can further enhance our knowledge of the intricate relationships between environmental exposures and metabolic alterations, ultimately contributing to human and environmental health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"192 ","pages":"Article 118361"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144549824","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Application of terahertz technology for chiral molecular sensing","authors":"Ni Zhang , Mingming Zhang , Qin Ouyang , Liang Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118360","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118360","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Chiral molecule sensing is vital across fields such as pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and biomedicine due to the distinct biological activities of enantiomers. Traditional chiral detection methods suffer from limitations including complex sample preparation, low sensitivity, and potentially damaging high-energy photons. Terahertz (THz) technology, operating in the 0.1–10 THz range, offers a promising alternative by probing low-frequency vibrational and rotational modes intrinsic to chirality with non-destructive, low-energy photons. This review presents recent advancements in THz-based chiral sensing, focusing on terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS), circularly polarized THz techniques, and metamaterial-enhanced THz sensors. We discuss the physical mechanisms underlying chiral responses in the THz band and evaluate technological innovations that enhance detection sensitivity and enantioselectivity. Challenges such as limited sensitivity, environmental interference, and device complexity are highlighted, alongside emerging solutions including chip-scale THz sources, and artificial intelligence-assisted data analysis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118360"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144518545","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tanvir Ahmed , Angéla Juhász , Utpal Bose , Netsane Shiferaw Terefe , Michelle L. Colgrave
{"title":"The role of fungal proteases in bioactive peptide production and analytical approaches for tracking their activity","authors":"Tanvir Ahmed , Angéla Juhász , Utpal Bose , Netsane Shiferaw Terefe , Michelle L. Colgrave","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118359","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118359","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Fungal proteases catalyse site-specific peptide bond cleavage in complex protein matrices, enabling bioactive peptide (BP) release. Accurate monitoring is vital for optimising hydrolysis efficiency, minimising nonspecific proteolysis, ensuring consistent yields, and preserving peptide biofunctionality. While analytical and computational tools are well-established for non-fungal systems, their adaptation to fungal proteases remains exploratory, with no comprehensive evaluation addressing the unique challenges in this field. This review synthesises current knowledge, identifies methodological gaps, and outlines future directions for developing fungi-specific analytical pipelines and computational frameworks for BP discovery. It explores fungal protease families, their roles in intracellular peptide processing, and fungal survival strategies. Fungal protease production methods are discussed, highlighting applications and challenges in BP production and hydrolysate quality improvement. Analytical strategies – such as agar plate assays, droplet microfluidics, FRET-based assays, and N-terminomic approaches – are evaluated through fungal case studies to illustrate applications, limitations, and innovation opportunities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"192 ","pages":"Article 118359"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144518925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Huina Zhou, Yi Yuan, Zhenzhen Liu, Mengying Xia, Qianqian Lv, Youmei Wang, Minghua Lu
{"title":"Research progress of metal-organic framework materials as sorbents for adsorption and extraction of environmental pollutants in sample preparation","authors":"Huina Zhou, Yi Yuan, Zhenzhen Liu, Mengying Xia, Qianqian Lv, Youmei Wang, Minghua Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118355","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118355","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Sample preparation has become an indispensable step in environmental analysis as it can remove interferences and enrich target substances. As the core of sample preparation, sorbent not only affects selectivity and sensitivity of analytical methods, but also determines accuracy and reliability of analytical results. In recent years, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and their derivative porous materials have demonstrated considerable potential in the fields of sample preparation owing to their exceptional properties, including diverse morphologies and structures, tunable pore sizes, high specific surface areas, as well as excellent thermal stability and chemical corrosion resistance. Consequently, innovative sample preparation methods based on MOFs and their derivatives have continuously emerged in the past ten years. This work reviews the recent advances of MOFs and their derivatives as adsorbents in the extraction and enrichment of environmental pollutants from 2019 to 2024, with particular emphasis on their roles in pollutant removal, adsorption, and enrichment processes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118355"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144518544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Recent advances in smartphone-integrated laser-scribed graphene-based electrochemical sensing platforms for personalized health management","authors":"Sirui Wu , Lican He , Jian Shu , Dianping Tang","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118357","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118357","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Laser-scribed graphene (LSG), with its high electrical conductivity, tunable surface chemistry, and facile fabrication, has emerged as a key material for developing advanced electrochemical sensors. This review presents recent advancements in LSG electrodes for portable and wearable electrochemical biosensing, focusing on both electrode materials functionalization and their integration with smartphone-based electrochemical sensing systems. It briefly introduces the design and working principles of smartphone-based electrochemical sensing system, followed by an analysis of the physicochemical properties and advantages of LSG electrodes. The advances of LSG electrodes are systematically discussed through various surface functionalization strategies, including the integration of metal nanoparticles, polymers, metal complexes, and biomolecules. Furthermore, the review examines the practical applications of smartphone-integrated LSG-based electrochemical sensing platforms for detecting physiological fluids such as blood, sweat, and saliva, demonstrating their potential for personalized healthcare and disease management. Finally, the challenges associated with LSG electrodes in portable and wearable sensing applications are addressed, along with future research directions. Recommendations are provided to promote the commercialization and widespread adoption of this technology. Smartphone-integrated LSG-based electrochemical sensing platforms is expected to play an increasingly crucial role in the future of healthcare.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118357"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144491439","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
V.C. Deivayanai, S. Karishma, Pavithra Swaminaathan, A. Saravanan, A.S. Vickram, K. Anbarasu, P.R. Yaashikaa
{"title":"Nanohybrid approaches for precise analytical screening of trace contaminants in complex environmental and biological matrices","authors":"V.C. Deivayanai, S. Karishma, Pavithra Swaminaathan, A. Saravanan, A.S. Vickram, K. Anbarasu, P.R. Yaashikaa","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118358","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118358","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In complex biological and environmental matrices, nanohybrid technologies have become effective instruments for the accurate analytical screening of trace contaminants. By combining organic and inorganic components, these hybrid materials provide improved pollutant detection sensitivity, selectivity, and multifunctionality. Their uses include pharmaceutical residue screening, microbial contamination detection, and environmental monitoring. Highly accurate real-time analysis is made possible by sophisticated nanohybrid sensors, such as metal-doped electrochemical sensors and nano-quantum dot sensors. Furthermore, contamination analysis is being advanced by AI-driven optimization and multimodal detection techniques. Notwithstanding their potential, issues like environmental impact, reproducibility, and stability need to be resolved before they can be widely used. To increase productivity and reduce environmental hazards, future advancements should concentrate on AI-assisted detection models and sustainable synthesis techniques.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118358"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144492139","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Siyu Wang , Bowei Li , Jiawen Xiang , Lianfu Li , Shichuan Xi , Ruhao Pan , Zhendong Luan , Lingxin Chen , Xin Zhang
{"title":"Surface-enhanced Raman scattering and surface-enhanced fluorescence dual-mode detection substrates: types, current progress and prospects","authors":"Siyu Wang , Bowei Li , Jiawen Xiang , Lianfu Li , Shichuan Xi , Ruhao Pan , Zhendong Luan , Lingxin Chen , Xin Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118353","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.trac.2025.118353","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Dual-mode optical platforms based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and surface-enhanced fluorescence (SEF) offer the combined advantages of intuitive and fast fluorescence imaging and the multiplexing capability of SERS. They have demonstrated considerable potential in bio-detection and bio-imaging. Herein, two key characteristics of the successful expansion of dual-mode SERS–SEF substrates are reviewed: the morphology and structure of these substrates and the distance effect between molecules and nano-particles. This review summarises the enhancement mechanism, structure, and properties of SERS–SEF substrates, structure and properties of dual-mode SERS–SEF substrates, and their applications in molecular detection, bio-imaging and immuno-assays are discussed. To solve the problem that SERS and SEF have conflicting requirements regarding the distance between reporting molecules and the substrate, a strategy for optimisation of shell thickness to control dual-mode SERS–SEF substrates is proposed. Finally, we expect the dual-mode SERS–SEF technology to be a powerful tool for the analysis of extreme environments by virtue of the protection of their inert shells.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":439,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Analytical Chemistry","volume":"191 ","pages":"Article 118353"},"PeriodicalIF":11.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144500922","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}