Development of a sensor for the detection of Escherichia coli in brackish waters

Monitoring of bacterial pathogens is important for marine environmental protection, because the presence of these microorganisms can be a serious risk for human health. For this reason, a portable sensor implemented as an electronic embedded system featuring disposable measurement cells was used to evaluate the ability and sensitivity of detection of Escherichia coli (E. coli) as an indicator of fecal pollution in transitional environments and a water sample added with E. coli (102 CFU/mL) was assayed. The first result obtained from the laboratory experiment seems promising for the determination of E. coli in environmental samples, though further improvements will be needed for the field application of this sensor in marine and brackish waters.