Simple arsenic sensor could save lives

A low-cost, easy-to-use arsenic sensor to test drinking water has been developed by researchers at UCL and Imperial College London, with BBSRC funding through the government's Industrial Strategy. 140 million people worldwide drink water containing unsafe levels of arsenic, according to the World Health Organisation. In one region of Bangladesh, one of the worst-affected countries, around 20% of all deaths are attributable to arsenic poisoning. Through Industrial Strategy funding, UCL and Imperial College have developed a small, sensitive and accurate sensor which produces an immediate measure of the arsenic level in water, at a cost of less than $1 per test. This makes it suitable for testing multiple sites in rural areas in low and middle income countries, where the problem of arsenic poisoning from contaminated drinking water is greatest, and potentially saving lives. Dr Joanne Santini, Reader in Microbiology at UCL Structural & Molecular Biology, had the idea of developing a sensor to detect arsenic in water when she discovered a microscopic organism that eats arsenic. Follow-on funding and a CASE studentship from BBSRC allowed Dr Santini and Professor Tony Cass, Professor of Chemical Biology at Imperial College London, whose work led to development of the first electronic blood glucose monitor, to begin work on an arsenic sensor.