A comprehensive review on electrochemical and optical aptasensors for organophosphorus pesticides

There has been a rise in pesticide use as a result of the growing industrialization of agriculture. Organophosphorus pesticides have been widely applied as agricultural and domestic pest control agents for nearly five decades, and they remain as health and environmental hazards in water supplies, vegetables, fruits, and processed foods causing serious foodborne illness. Thus, the rapid and reliable detection of these harmful organophosphorus toxins with excellent sensitivity and selectivity is of utmost importance. Aptasensors are biosensors based on aptamers, which exhibit exceptional recognition capability for a variety of targets. Aptasensors offer numerous advantages over conventional approaches, including increased sensitivity, selectivity, design flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. As a result, interest in developing aptasensors continues to expand. This paper discusses the historical and modern advancements of aptasensors through the use of nanotechnology to enhance the signal, resulting in high sensitivity and detection accuracy. More importantly, this review summarizes the principles and strategies underlying different organophosphorus aptasensors, including electrochemical, electrochemiluminescent, fluorescent, and colorimetric ones. Graphical abstract