Rapid and sensitive double‐label based immunochromatographic assay for zearalenone detection in cereals

A double‐label immunochromatographic based assay (DL‐ICA) was developed to monitor zearalenone (ZEN) levels in cereals, based on Eu 3+ nanoparticles (EuNP). The DL‐ICA exhibited excellent sensitivity, reliability and selectivity in real samples. It showed low limits of detection (0.21–0.25 μg/kg) and broad analytical ranges (up to 120 μg/kg). The total analytical time, including sample preparation and DL‐ICA execution, was reduced by 15 min compared with HPLC. The recovery rates ranged from 95.0–118.4%, with relative standard deviations (RSD) <11.6%. Inter‐ and intra‐day validations were assessed, recovery rates of 89.3–106.9% and RSD of 2.3–9.7% were obtained, suggesting considerable stability and reliability for the assay. An excellent correlation was observed between DL‐ICA and a reference HPLC method ( R 2 = 0.9899). Compared to current immunoassays, the current DL‐ICA is inexpensive, highly sensitive, and rapid. Therefore, DL‐ICA constitutes a novel tool for monitoring mycotoxins in food and feed to ensure safety.