tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Sensors (Basel)
. 2021 Mar 1;21(5):1681.
doi: 10.3390/s21051681.
Proof of Concept for a Quick and Highly Sensitive On-Site Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by Plasmonic Optical Fibers and Molecularly Imprinted Polymers
Nunzio Cennamo[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Girolamo D'Agostino[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Chiara Perri[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Francesco Arcadio[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Guido Chiaretti[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Eva Maria Parisio[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Giulio Camarlinghi[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Chiara Vettori[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Francesco Di Marzo[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Rosario Cennamo[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Giovanni Porto[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Luigi Zeni[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
The rapid spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pathogen has generated a huge international public health emergency. Currently the reference diagnostic technique for virus determination is Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) real time analysis that requires specialized equipment, reagents and facilities and typically 3-4 h to perform. Thus, the realization of simple, low-cost, small-size, rapid and point-of-care diagnostics tests has become a global priority. In response to the current need for quick, highly sensitive and on-site detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in several aqueous solutions, a specific molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) receptor has been designed, realized, and combined with an optical sensor. More specifically, the proof of concept of a SARS-CoV-2 sensor has been demonstrated by exploiting a plasmonic plastic optical fiber sensor coupled with a novel kind of synthetic MIP nano-layer, especially designed for the specific recognition of Subunit 1 of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. First, we have tested the effectiveness of the developed MIP receptor to bind the Subunit 1 of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, then the results of preliminary tests on SARS-CoV-2 virions, performed on samples of nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs in universal transport medium (UTM) and physiological solution (0.9% NaCl), were compared with those obtained with RT-PCR. According to these preliminary results, the sensitivity of the proposed optical-chemical sensor proved to be higher than the RT-PCR one. Furthermore, a relatively fast response time (about 10 min) to the virus was obtained without the use of additional reagents.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs); optical fiber sensors; optical-chemical sensors; surface plasmon resonance (SPR).
. 2021 Mar 1;21(5):1681.
doi: 10.3390/s21051681.
Proof of Concept for a Quick and Highly Sensitive On-Site Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by Plasmonic Optical Fibers and Molecularly Imprinted Polymers
Nunzio Cennamo[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Girolamo D'Agostino[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Chiara Perri[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Francesco Arcadio[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Guido Chiaretti[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Eva Maria Parisio[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Giulio Camarlinghi[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Chiara Vettori[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Francesco Di Marzo[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Rosario Cennamo[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Giovanni Porto[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Luigi Zeni[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 33804378
- DOI: 10.3390/s21051681
Abstract
The rapid spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pathogen has generated a huge international public health emergency. Currently the reference diagnostic technique for virus determination is Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) real time analysis that requires specialized equipment, reagents and facilities and typically 3-4 h to perform. Thus, the realization of simple, low-cost, small-size, rapid and point-of-care diagnostics tests has become a global priority. In response to the current need for quick, highly sensitive and on-site detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in several aqueous solutions, a specific molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) receptor has been designed, realized, and combined with an optical sensor. More specifically, the proof of concept of a SARS-CoV-2 sensor has been demonstrated by exploiting a plasmonic plastic optical fiber sensor coupled with a novel kind of synthetic MIP nano-layer, especially designed for the specific recognition of Subunit 1 of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. First, we have tested the effectiveness of the developed MIP receptor to bind the Subunit 1 of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, then the results of preliminary tests on SARS-CoV-2 virions, performed on samples of nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs in universal transport medium (UTM) and physiological solution (0.9% NaCl), were compared with those obtained with RT-PCR. According to these preliminary results, the sensitivity of the proposed optical-chemical sensor proved to be higher than the RT-PCR one. Furthermore, a relatively fast response time (about 10 min) to the virus was obtained without the use of additional reagents.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs); optical fiber sensors; optical-chemical sensors; surface plasmon resonance (SPR).