Low cost paper-based strip tests for detection of mycotoxins in grains

Term: 3 years, beginning in 2020

Status: Ongoing

Funding Amount: $22, 494

Lead Researcher(s): Dr. Maria DeRosa (Carleton University)

Funding Partners: Agriculture Development Fund - Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Alberta Wheat Commission, Manitoba Wheat and Barley Growers Association, Western Grain Research Foundation

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Project Description

This project builds on the preliminary success on developing paper-based strip testing for Ochratoxin A, funded by Sask Wheat and other industry funders. The goals of this project are: 1) to optimize and scale up of test kits for Ochratoxin A that has been developed in the previous study; 2) to develop a simple, inexpensive, strip-based test for other mycotoxins like Fumonisin B1, Aflatoxin B1, and Deoxynivalenol (DON) alone and in combination and 3) to undertake a preliminary validation for their use outside the lab. This research will attempt to test these strips outside of the lab environment (farm, grain elevator) in a larger trial. Existing testing for mycotoxins (e.g., ELISA or LC-MS) are expensive and can take several days and the need for rapid tests for mycotoxins has been widely recognized. The team will expand their successful aptamer-based approach for the detection of DON, FB1, and AFB1 individually and in a multi mycotoxin strip format.