Sub-Nanomolar Detection and Discrimination of Microcystin Congeners Using Aerolysin Nanopores

Climate-driven disruptions in aquatic ecosystems are amplifying cyanotoxin production, threatening drinking and recreational water safety. Monitoring of these toxins is challenged by requirements of the low µg/L detections limits and structural diversity. Here, we employ aerolysin nanopores to distinguish seven of the most prevalent microcystin congeners, both individually and in mixtures, at environmentally relevant concentrations. Importantly, we showed that aerolysin enables the detection of microcystins in different lake water samples at concentrations below the World Health Organization's intervention thresholds, reaching picomolar sensitivity. Moreover, combining experiments and molecular dynamics simulations, we further investigated the microcystin sensing mechanism, suggesting that the ionic current blockage is primarily governed by K238 in aerolysin, while dwell time is regulated by R220 constriction site. Our results open the way to use the nanopore sensing technology for real-time monitoring of microcystins in drinking water sources and surface waters.