Abuzar Kabir’s team at FIU used their new Fabric Phase Sorptive Extraction technology to test popular (and unregulated) “slimming” herbal teas for potentially dangerous chemicals. The FPSE fabric is covered with specialized coatings that pull specific toxins, pesticides, or drugs out of a liquid. The method can detect even a few micrograms of a substance.
The team found that some manufacturers had added minute amounts of pharmaceuticals such as sibutramine (an appetite suppressant banned from the U.S. markets) and fluoxetine (i.e., Prozac) to their teas to promote weight loss. The fabric has also been used by scientists around the world to monitor radiation exposure, manage laboratory air and water quality, use molecularly imprinting polymers to detect cancer biomarkers in blood, and detect environmental pollution.
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