Table 2.
The LLOQ from the present study is amongst the lowest values observed in commercial and emerging immuno-based methods. The reference tests in the present table were not optimized for mycotoxin detection in human serum (Table S2). As a result, the performance of the assays compared in Table 2 should not be considered a head-to-head comparison but a comparison between detection techniques that have employed similar formats for establishing detection (i.e., direct detection) and calibration curves (i.e., non-linear) for Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), deoxynivalenol (DON), fumonisin (FUM), ochratoxin A (OTA), and zearalenone (ZEA).
| Parameters or Studies for Comparison | AFB1 (ppb) | DON (ppb) | FUM (ppb) | OTA (ppb) | ZEA (ppb) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest EU guidance levels for food ° | 2 ◊ | 500 ◊ | 800 ◊ | 2 ◊ | 50 ◊ |
| LLOQ from the present study * | 0.61 | 19.53 | 4.88 | 19.53 | 0.15 |
| Cusabio (ELISA) § | 1.5 | 100 | 30 | 1.5 | 30 |
| Elabscience (ELISA) ⊗ | 0.6 | 150 | 20 | 5 | 6 |
| HelicaTM (ELISA) ⊕ | 4 | 500 | 100 | 1 | NI |
| AgraQuant® (ELISA) # | 2 | 250 | 250 | 2 | 25 |
| VICAM (LFIA) ^ | 2 | 250 | 200 | 2.5 | 100 |
| Wu et al. 2020 (LFIA) ∅ | 0.1 | NA | 4 | 0.2 | 0.8 |
| Xing et al. 2020 (LFIA) | 4 | 200 | 20 | NA | 40 |
| Charlermroj et al. 2021 (LFIA) ∅ | 5 | 10 | 0.5 | NA | 10 |
| Joshi et al. 2016 (SPR) ∅ | 3 | 26 | 10 | 13 | 16 |
| Wie et al. 2019 (SPR) ∅ | 0.9 | 5.3 | NA | 1.9 | 10.3 |
° Excluding foodstuffs for infants and young children. ◊ Food commodities with the lowest guidance levels for mycotoxins are as follows: AFB1 = groundnuts, tree nuts, dried fruit, and all cereals, including maize and rice; DON = bread, biscuits, pastries, cereal snacks, and breakfast cereals; FUM = maize-based breakfast cereals and maize-based snacks; OTA = flavored or fruit wine and grape juice or its concentrate; ZEA = bread, pastries, biscuits, cereal snacks, and breakfast cereals. * LLOQ presented in ppb because 1 ng/mL = 1 ppb. Refer to Figure 1 in the results section. § Lowest detection range is indicated on the website [38]. ⊗ Detection limits were noted from the Elabscience website for AFB1, DON, FUM, OTA, and ZEA [40,41,42,43,44]. ⊕ Detection limits were noted from the Hygiena website for AFB1, DON, FUM, OTA, and ZEA [45,46,47,48,49]. # Limit of quantitation noted from the AgraQuant® website for AFB1, DON, FUM, OTA, and ZEA [50,51,52,53,54]. ^ Limit of detection noted from the VICAM website for AFB1, DON, FUM, OTA, and ZEA [55,56,57,58,59]. ∅ Lowest ppb in the linear range as indicated by the authors [33,34,35,36,37]. ELISA = enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; LFIA = lateral flow immunoassay; SPR = surface plasmon resonance; NA = not applicable; NI = not indicated.