AFB1 recognition from liver tissue via afb1 imprinted magnetic nanoparticles

Fungi grow rapidly depending on the increase in humidity and temperature, producing harmful toxins called "mycotoxins" in cereals, feed and almost all dry foods. The most important of these toxins is Aflatoxins which are produced mainly by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Although there are more than 20 types of aflatoxins, types B1, B2, G1, G2 are the most important ones and Aflatoxin B1 is one of the most harmful among mycotoxins with its carcinogenic properties. As a result of consumption and metabolization of AFB1 contaminated food by animals, AFB1 and metabolites such as M1, M2, aflatoxicol can be found in meat and dairy products. People may be exposed to aflatoxicosis as a result of consumption of such contaminated animal products. Many of the methods used for the detection of aflatoxin require long extraction procedures which is time consuming, labourous and costly. In this thesis, AFB1 imprinted magnetic nanoparticles (magAFB1-MIP) were synthesized using molecular imprinting technology to be used in AFB1 recognition. Characterization studies of the synthesized polymers were carried out by swelling analysis, surface area measurements, scanning electron microscopy and particle size analysis. The effects of AFB1 concentration, temperature and interaction time on the adsorption capacity of magAFB1-MIPs from the aqueous solution were investigated. Selectivity of the magAFB1-MIP was analyzed calculating the selectivity coefficients against competitor molecules of AFB2, AFG1 and AFG2. Moreover as a final part of the thesis AFB1 recognition form liver tissue was investigated.