Molecularly Imprinted Impedimetric Sensor for Determination of Mycotoxin Zearalenone

The mycotoxin zearalenone (ZEA) prompts reproductive toxicity due to its strong estrogenic effects. In this work, an electrochemical sensor for determination of ZEA was developed by electropolymerization of a molecularly imprinted poly (o-phenylenediamine) (PPD) film on screen-printed gold electrode (SPGE) surface. The sensor was examined by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) using K-3[Fe(CN)(6)]/K-4[Fe(CN)(6)] as redox probe. The molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) sensor showed a wide determination range from 2.50 to 200.00 ngmL(-1) for ZEA. The Limit of detection (LOD) was calculated to be 0.20 ngmL(-1), based on the signal to noise (S/N) ratio equal to 3.0. The sensor displayed good repeatability, with RSD values <= 4.6 %, and maintained 93.2 % of its initial response after storage for 10 days in air at room temperature. The developed method was successfully applied for the determination of ZEA in corn flakes with mean recoveries ranged from 96.2 % to 103.8 % and RSDs within the interval of 2.1 % to 3.8 %.