Discovery of multiple bee-hazardous pesticides in ornamental plants via the Bee-Plex multi-target microsphere screening method

Rubing Zou ¹, Ruud van Dam ², Nathalie Smits ²

⁰Wageningen Food Safety Research, Akkermaalsbos 2, 6708 WB, Wageningen, The Netherlands; Institute of Pesticide and Environmental Toxicology, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Biology and Ecological Regulation of Crop Pathogens and Insects, Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.

Journal of Hazardous Materials +

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November 26, 2024

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

A new portable immunoassay, Bee-Plex, rapidly screens for multiple hazardous pesticides in bee-attracting crops. This tool helps monitor pesticide contamination, crucial for understanding and mitigating global bee decline.

Area Of Science

Environmental Science
Analytical Chemistry
Ecotoxicology

Background

Pesticide exposure is a major cause of global bee decline.
Lack of efficient on-site screening methods hinders monitoring of pesticide occurrence in bee-attracting crops.

Purpose Of The Study

To develop a portable, multi-analyte immunoassay for rapid on-site screening of bee-hazardous pesticides.
To assess the occurrence and frequency of pesticide contamination in ornamental plants.

Main Methods

Development of an 8-plex indirect competitive microsphere-based immunoassay (Bee-Plex) using color-encoded superparamagnetic microspheres.
Utilized broad-specific antibodies for screening a wide range of pesticides and metabolites.
Combined Bee-Plex screening with LC-MS/MS confirmatory analysis.

Main Results

Bee-Plex achieved high sensitivity for 8 target pesticides within 40 minutes.
The assay demonstrated a broad screening profile for 30 pesticides and metabolites across 6 chemical classes.
Analysis of roses revealed 100% contamination with neonicotinoids and 70% with avermectins.

Conclusions

Bee-Plex is a powerful tool for rapid, simultaneous screening of multiple bee-hazardous pesticides.
The study provides new insights into multi-pesticide contamination in ornamental plants, aiding in bee protection strategies.

Keywords:

Bee-hazardous pesticides LC-MS/MS Microsphere-based immunoassay Multi-analyte detection Ornamental plants