Antifouling ionic liquid doped molecularly imprinted polymer-based ratiometric electrochemical sensor for highly stable and selective detection of zearalenone.

Zearalenone (ZEN) is a nonsteroidal estrogenic mycotoxin, and its accurate detection in complex biological samples is still a challenge. Herein, an antifouling ratiometric electrochemical sensor has been developed for its detection. In this system, black phosphorus-graphene oxide is used as substrate to amplify the signal; ionic liquid doped molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) endows the sensing surface not only high recognition ability but also high capability to resist nonspecific adsorption. During MIP preparation a magnetic field is introduced to regulate polymer structure for improving the recognition efficiency of the sensor. The signals of ZEN and poly methylene blue (MB) serve as response signal and internal reference signal, respectively. The peak current of ZEN increases with the increase of ZEN concentration, while the peak current of poly(MB) decreases simultaneously; their ratio changes with ZEN concentration variation. The obtained ratiometric sensor shows a wide linear response range of 0.05-13 μM and a low limit of detection of 12.7 nM (S/N = 3). Furthermore, it has high selectivity, stability and reproducibility, thanks to the advanced antifouling MIP and the built-in correction of poly(MB). The sensor has been successfully applied to determine ZEN in human serum.