A lateral field excited acoustic wave sensor for the detection of saxitoxin in water

In the United States, approximately 201/6 of all foodborne disease outbreaks result from die consumption of seafood products. Specifically, the disease Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP) is caused by consuming molluscan shellfish contaminated with a suite of neurotoxins the most potent of which is saxitoxin (STX). The current method for detecting STX is the mouse bioassay in which a mouse is exposed to a shellfish sample and the time required for the mouse to perish is noted. The length of time required for the mouse to die is used to estimate the level of STX in the original sample. Since this technique is a time consuming and costly laboratory-based procedure, a rapid in situ sensor is needed to detect STX levels in shellfish and in sea water so timely closures of shellfish grounds can be made to protect public health. In this work, a novel Lateral Field Excited (LFE) acoustic wave sensor, which has been successfully used for chemical and biological sensing, is employed to detect STX in water, proving itself as a feasible alternative to the mouse bioassay in STX detection.