Crown ether decorated silicon photonics for safeguarding against lead poisoning.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 38744833.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-47938-6 and PMC identifier 11094186.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Lead (Pb<sup>2+</sup>) toxification is a concerning, unaddressed global public health crisis that leads to 1 million deaths annually. Yet, public policies to address this issue have fallen short. This work harnesses the unique abilities of crown ethers, which selectively bind to specific ions. This study demonstrates the synergistic integration of highly-scalable silicon photonics, with crown ether amine conjugation via Fischer esterification in an environmentally-friendly fashion. This realizes an integrated photonic platform that enables the in-operando, highly-selective and quantitative detection of various ions. The development dispels the existing notion that Fischer esterification is restricted to organic compounds, facilitating the subsequent amine conjugation for various crown ethers. The presented platform is specifically engineered for selective Pb<sup>2+</sup> detection, demonstrating a large dynamic detection range, and applicability to field samples. The compatibility of this platform with cost-effective manufacturing indicates the potential for pervasive implementation of the integrated photonic sensor technology to safeguard against societal Pb<sup>2+</sup> poisoning.