The glowing potential of Nile red for microplastics Identification: Science and mechanism of fluorescence staining

Ho, Derek; Liu, Shengdong; Wei, Haoran; Karthikeyan, K.G.

doi:10.1016/j.microc.2023.109708

Cited by 15 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 138 publications

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“…An alternative method of measuring marine MPs is available at a lower cost. The sample can be stained with the fluorescent dye, Nile Red, which binds to MPs making them measurable using traditional fluorescence microscopy [7,8]. While lower in instrumental cost than spectroscopic methods, this approach is labour-intensive and time-consuming.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

EnderScope: a low-cost 3D printer-based scanning microscope for microplastic detection

Burke,

Müller,

Saggiomo

et al. 2024

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A.

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Low-cost and scalable technologies that allow people to measure microplastics in their local environment could facilitate a greater understanding of the global problem of marine microplastic pollution. A typical way to measure marine microplastic pollution involves imaging filtered seawater samples stained with a fluorescent dye to aid in the detection of microplastics. Although traditional fluorescence microscopy allows these particles to be manually counted and detected, this is a resource- and labour-intensive task. Here, we describe a novel, low-cost microscope for automated scanning and detection of microplastics in filtered seawater samples—the EnderScope. This microscope is based on the mechanics of a low-cost 3D printer (Creality Ender 3). The hotend of the printer is replaced with an optics module, allowing for the reliable and calibrated motion system of the 3D printer to be used for automated scanning over a large area (>20 × 20 cm). The EnderScope is capable of both reflected light and fluorescence imaging. In both configurations, we aimed to make the design as simple and cost-effective as possible, for example, by using low-cost LEDs for illumination and lighting gels as emission filters. We believe this tool is a cost-effective solution for microplastic measurement. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Open, reproducible hardware for microscopy'.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%