A review of different methods used for detection of toxins

Introduction. Toxins are produced by living organisms such as animals, plants, bacteria and fungi. These substances are poisonous to humans. The early and rapid detection of toxins is essential for appropriate management.Material and Methods. The aim of this study is to review the different methods for detection of toxins produced by living organisms. In this study, recently published reports on methods used for toxins detection were reviewed. The advantages and disadvantages of each method as well as their detection limit were also discussed. Conclusion. Elisa, mass spectrometry and chromatography based methods have been evaluated to have good capability for analysis of some toxins because of their high sensitivity, high selectivity, high specificity and capability to identify and quantify unknown agents simultaneously in a short time frame.