Highly sensitive and rapid Ochratoxin A detection via graphene field-effect transistors

Mycotoxins comprise a frequent type of toxins present in food and feed. The problem of mycotoxin contamination has been recently aggravated due to the increased complexity of the farm-to-fork chains, resulting in negative effects on human and animal health and, consequently, economics. The easy-to-use, on-site, on-demand, and rapid monitoring of mycotoxins in food/feed is highly desired. In this work, we report on an advanced bioelectronic mycotoxin sensor based on graphene field-effect transistors integrated on a silicon chip. A specific aptamer for Ochratoxin A (OTA) was attached to graphene through covalent bonding with the pyrene-based linker, which was deposited with an electric field stimulation to increase the surface coverage. This graphene/aptamer sensor demonstrates high sensitivity to OTA with the lowest detection limit of 1.4 pM within a response time of 10 s which is superior to any other reported aptamer-based methods.