Detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA with a plasmonic chiral biosensor

Zhicai Yu; Li Pan; Xiaowei Ma; Tianming Li; Fukai Wang; Donglei Yang; Min Li; Pengfei Wang

doi:10.1016/j.bios.2023.115526

Detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA with a plasmonic chiral biosensor

Biosens Bioelectron. 2023 Oct 1:237:115526. doi: 10.1016/j.bios.2023.115526. Epub 2023 Jul 11.

Authors

Zhicai Yu¹, Li Pan¹, Xiaowei Ma¹, Tianming Li¹, Fukai Wang¹, Donglei Yang¹, Min Li², Pengfei Wang³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Nucleic Acid Chemistry and Nanomedicine, Center for DNA Information Storage, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200127, China.
² Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Nucleic Acid Chemistry and Nanomedicine, Center for DNA Information Storage, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200127, China. Electronic address: rjlimin@shsmu.edu.cn.
³ Department of Laboratory Medicine, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Nucleic Acid Chemistry and Nanomedicine, Center for DNA Information Storage, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200127, China. Electronic address: pengfei.wang@sjtu.edu.cn.

PMID: 37453279
DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2023.115526

Abstract

The detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection is crucial for effective prevention and surveillance of COVID-19. In this study, we report the development of a novel detection assay named CENSOR that enables sensitive and specific detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA using a plasmonic chiral biosensor in combination with CRISPR-Cas13a. The chiral biosensor was designed by assembling gold nanorods (AuNR) into three-dimensional plasmonic architectures of controllable chirality on a DNA origami template. This modular assembly mode enhances the flexibility and adaptability of the sensor, thereby improving its universality as a sensing platform. In the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, the CRISPR-Cas13a enzyme triggers collateral cleavage of RNA molecules, resulting in a differential chiral signal readout by the biosensor compared to when there are no RNA targets present. Notably, even subtle variations in the concentration of SARS-CoV-2 RNA can provoke significant changes in chiral signals after preamplification of RNA targets (calculated LOD: 0.133 aM), which establishes the foundation for quantitative detection. Furthermore, CENSOR demonstrated high sensitivity and accuracy in detecting SARS-CoV-2 RNA from clinical samples, suggesting its potential application in clinical settings for viral detection beyond SARS-CoV-2.

Keywords: CRISPR-Cas13a; Chiral biosensor; DNA origami; RNA detection; SARS-Cov-2.

MeSH terms

Biosensing Techniques*
COVID-19* / diagnosis
Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats
Humans
RNA, Viral / genetics
SARS-CoV-2 / genetics

Substances

RNA, Viral