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Gold nanoparticles help detect a toxic metal -- mercury

With gold nanoparticles, DNA and smart chemistry as their tools, scientists at Northwestern University have developed a simple "litmus test" for mercury that eventually could be used for on-the-spot environmental monitoring of bodies of water, such as rivers, streams, lakes and oceans, to evaluate their safety as food and drinking water sources. An article detailing the technology's success will be published online April 27 by Angewandte Chemie, the prestigious European journal of applied chemistry.

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Keywords: gold, nanoparticles, detect, toxic, metal, mercury, nanoparticle

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