Dual-mode immunochromatographic test strips based on aggregation-induced luminescence nanoprobes for the detection of ZEN in corn.

Zearalenone (ZEN) is a secondary metabolite produced by various Fusarium species. Its widespread contamination has raised deep concern globally. Also, ZEN is reproductively toxic, hepatotoxic and carcinogenic. Rapid detection methods for ZEN mainly suffer from the aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) effect of fluorescent materials. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop new methods for detecting ZEN. On this basis, we synthesised AIE polymer microspheres (AIEPMs) using aggregation-induced emission (AIE) dyes. We coupled these microspheres with antibodies to prepare immunoprobes to establish immunochromatographic test strips with a colorimetric/fluorescent dual mode. Under optimal parameters, the visual limit of detection (vLOD) for the colorimetric mode was 0.625 ng mL^-1. In comparison, the quantitative limit of detection (qLOD) for the fluorescent mode was as low as 0.039 ng mL^-1. The average recoveries ranged from 97.60% to 102.46%, and the coefficients of variation (CV) ranged from 2.10% to 10.70%. These data demonstrate the excellent reproducibility and reliability of the established method. The researchers have successfully applied the method for accurate sample detection. The method demonstrated the great potential of AIEPMs-ICA as a colorimetric/fluorescent dual-mode test strip for the rapid detection of ZEN.