FAST: Fast-Accurate-Simple Test : Research Impact [by Mahidol World]

Heavy metal contamination in plants and agricultural products has been one of major environmental and human health concerns for several countries including Thailand. However, methods to evaluate heavy metals requires expensive and complicating equipment, which is not usually accessible by plant breeders and farmers. Here we developed a new approach to evaluate heavy metal contamination in plants and environmental samples using a simple staining technique coupled with image analysis. We used a sulfur-containing organic compound as a staining chemical. The chemical interacts with metals such as Cadmium, zinc, and copper in plant tissues and develops distinct colors, which can be further analyzed by image analysis software. Our technology produces results that are reliable and consistent with plant growth and heavy metal contents measured by conventional methods. We are currently developing a test kit and a mobile phone application, which will allow for Fast, Accurate, and Simple detection of contaminants. In addition, this technique can be applied in plant breeding program to screen for plant varieties with low heavy metal uptake.
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