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An aptamer‐based paper microfluidic device for the colorimetric determination of cocaine
Author(s) -
Wang Ling,
Musile Giacomo,
McCord Bruce R.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
electrophoresis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.666
H-Index - 158
eISSN - 1522-2683
pISSN - 0173-0835
DOI - 10.1002/elps.201700254
Subject(s) - aptamer , microfluidics , drug detection , colloidal gold , nanotechnology , instrumentation (computer programming) , computer science , materials science , nanoparticle , chromatography , chemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , operating system
A method utilizing paper microfluidics coupled with gold nanoparticles and two anticocaine aptamers has been developed to detect seized cocaine samples. The ready‐to‐use format involves the use of a paper strip that produces a color change resulting from the salt‐induced aggregation of gold nanoparticles producing a visible color change indicating the presence of the drug. This format is specific for the detection of cocaine. The visual LOD for the method was 2.5 μg and the camera based LOD was 2.36 μg. The operation of the device is easy and rapid, and does not require extensive training or instrumentation. All of the materials utilized in the device are safe and environmental friendly. This device should prove a useful tool for the screening of forensic samples.