Guarding our water together: the silent threats and sustainable solutions of cyanotoxins monitoring in freshwater

Cyanotoxins are the hidden dangers of freshwater lakes produced by cyanobacteria in warm and nutrient-rich environments, which are becoming more prevalent due to climate changes. The sophisticated monitoring methods of cyanotoxins, such as liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, are usually time-consuming, complicated, and expensive. This is where innovative biosensors offer promising and sustainable solutions for cyanotoxins monitoring because they are portable, user-friendly, and cost-effective, which can quickly detect the presence of cyanotoxins. These “cyanotoxins detectives” use enzymes, antibodies, nucleic acids, and receptors to capture and produce signals in the presence of toxins. We conduct a compelling case study at a freshwater recreational lake, Taman Aman Lake, in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. The lake is dominated by Microcystis aeruginosa, a cyanobacteria known for producing microcystins, and it exemplifies the need for accessible monitoring solutions. Thus, a sustainable toolkit, MicStrip^TM, an optical biosensor, is developed to provide on-site and continuous monitoring of cyanotoxin detection through simple colour changes. MicStrip^TM transforms complex bioscience procedures into sustainable, accessible, community-driven solutions for protecting water ecosystems and public health. The key agenda for sustainable lake management shall involve community stewardship. By empowering the community as citizen scientists and educational outreach programs, the community can be the active guardian of freshwater resources.