Surface plasmon spectroscopic detection of Saxitoxin

For the surface-optoelectronic study of Saxitoxin sensing, we fabricated self-assembled calix[4] arene derivative monolayers as the recognition-functional interfaces on a gold surface. An interaction study between Saxitoxin and calix[4] arene derivative monolayers were performed using surface plasmon resonance ( SPR) spectroscopy. Among three calix[4] arene derivatives, calix[4] arene crown ether SAM showed the highest sensitivity to Saxitoxin. The detection limit of this system is three orders of magnitude lower than that of the mouse bioassay which is the current benchmark for Saxitoxin detection.