Due to the increased usage of agrochemicals, especially herbicides, in recent decades, high cumulative levels of herbicides have been polluting soil and water sources. Against this background, detecting the presence of these chemicals as contaminants is crucial to effective environmental monitoring. Key to detection efforts are nanobiosensors, devices capable of detecting very small quantities of a specific analyte.
Livia F. Rodrigues and the Nanoneurobiophysics research group from the Federal University of São Carlos, Sorocaba, SP, Brazil, have published their studies on nanomechanical sensing possibilities in NANO: Brief Reports and Reviews. Entitled “Nanomechanical Cantilever-Based Sensor: an Efficient Tool to Measure the Binding Between the Herbicide Mesotrione and 4-Hydroxyphenylpyruvate Dioxygenase”, the article explores the nanomechanical capabilities of the Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) cantilever for use as nanobiosensors for enzyme-herbicide binding detection. Results of tests have revealed the suitability of the employed methods in the precise detection of environmental contaminants.
Filed Under: M2M (machine to machine)