Versatile platform for mobile detection of environmental pollutants using DNA Quantum Clusters

Abstract

Environmental pollution is an ever-growing concern. Industrial sites as well as agricultural use areas can bear immense harmful burdens. Unintentionally improperly disposed of wastes as well as illegally dumped chemicals pose additional risks in the environment, while remains of pharmaceuticals are a regular concern in sources of drinking water. Pollutants such as PFAS and microplastics could even be detected in the most remote regions of the earth and are known for adverse effects on humans and their environment. Establishing a comprehensive overview of where pollution of which severity and with what substances occurs is thus important, so remediations can be planned and prioritized. This necessitates fast, versatile, reliable and cheap measurements, ideally directly at sampling sites.

A promising class of transducers for detecting a multitude of pollutants are DNA Quantum Clusters. QC:DNA are highly sensitive and selective transducers for many substances, showing responses in their fluorescent behaviors based on their chemical environment. Based on the specific design, QC:DNA can interact with different chemical species and exhibit tuned excitation and emission wavelengths.

For the use of such transducers, we present a fluorescence reader integrated around capillaries. The system is designed for easy and fast customization for a large range of excitation and emission wavelengths while focusing on system portability and striving for affordability. The microfluidic system controlling and performing the assay is based on droplet sequences to facilitate fast mixing while allowing for incubation times with minimal dispersion and enabling a temporary storage and a precise processing of samples.

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