A simple fluorometric method for rapid screening of aflatoxins after their extraction by magnetic MOF-808/graphene oxide composite and their discrimination by HPLC

Abstract

Herein, a high-performance screening tool for the selective and sensitive monitoring of aflatoxins is reported based on their great quenching effect on the blue emission of graphene quantum dots (GQDs). To make a specific determination, a pre-extraction method was also developed using a new nano-sorbent based on the surface-imprinted Zr metal-organic framework on the magnetic graphene oxide (MGO/MOF-808@MIP). The adsorbing efficiency of the prepared composite was remarkably higher than the pristine MOF-808 or bare GO. The presence of GO nanosheets, as well as nanoporous MOF-808 provided a high accessible surface area to form the MIP layer. It provided a great number of MIP sites for high efficient and rapid extraction of aflatoxins. The presence of magnetic nanoparticles in the structure of nanocomposite also facilitated the extraction process using a magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) system. The combination of this specific and high-performance extraction with simple fluorometric detection caused a potent screening tool for aflatoxins. The method was able to monitor the total aflatoxins content of food samples with a linear range of 0.05–8 ng mL−1, which was more sensitive than the fluorometric system without extraction (5–500 ng mL−1). More developments were made by the application of a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the discrimination of the extracted aflatoxins. The system showed high sensitivity and selectivity and was able to detect different aflatoxins with an acceptable resolution.