The new sensor based on nanomaterials detects influenza and COVID-19 in just 10 seconds

[ad_1]

Do you suffer from cough, sore throat and congestion? Any number of respiratory viruses could be responsible. Conventional tests can identify potential culprits by relying on chemical reactions, but some researchers want to replace chemistry with the electrical changes sensed by nanomaterials. Today, scientists report using a nanomaterial one atom thick to build a device that can simultaneously detect the presence of viruses that cause COVID-19 and influenza -; At much lower levels and much more quickly than conventional tests of either.

The researchers will present their findings at the American Chemical Society (ACS) spring meeting. ACS Spring 2023 is a hybrid meeting that takes place virtually and in person from March 26-30, featuring more than 10,000 presentations on a wide range of scientific topics.

The symptoms of both influenza and COVID-19 overlap greatly, making it difficult to tell them apart, notes Djee Akinwande, PhD, who presents the work at the meeting.

When these two viruses spread together as they did earlier this winter, it would be extremely useful to have a sensor that can simultaneously detect if you have COVID, the flu, none of the above, or both.”


Deji Akinwande, Ph.D.

Akinwande, who works at the University of Texas at Austin, says the device he and his colleagues are developing could be modified to test for other infections as well.

The group, including Dmitry Kireev, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher in Akinwande’s lab, built a COVID-19 and flu sensor using graphene, which is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice pattern. Its extreme thinness makes graphene very sensitive to any electrical changes in its environment. Akinwande and other researchers see huge potential in using it and other similar nanomaterials to create sensors for many different applications.

“These thin nanomaterials generally hold the record for best sensitivity, even down to detecting single atoms, and they can improve the ability to detect very small amounts of anything that needs to be sensed, whether bacteria or viruses, in a gas or in the blood,” says Akinwande. “.

Previously, his group reported the design of a graphene-based temporary tattoo that could monitor blood pressure. The tattoo consists of pairs of sensors placed along the arteries of the arm. One half of each pair sends an electric current, which is detected by their partner. This signal is used to determine blood flow.

To build the infection sensor, the researchers had to make the graphene respond to the presence of the viral protein. To do this, they looked at the immune system, which produces antibodies that are fine-tuned to recognize and latch on to specific pathogens. The researchers attached antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and against the influenza virus to graphene. When a sample from an infected person is placed on the sensor, these antibodies bind to target proteins, causing a change in the electrical current.

The researchers did not have the safety facilities to use whole or active influenza viruses or SARS-CoV-2 viruses to test the roughly square inch sensor. As an alternative, they used proteins from these viruses that are delivered in a liquid designed to resemble saliva. Their results indicated that not only could the sensor detect the presence of proteins, it could do so when they were present in extremely low amounts. This sensitivity indicates that the sensor could be used to detect atomized viral particles present in the breath, says Akinwande.

The sensor also worked quickly, returning results within about 10 seconds of dropping the sample, he says. By comparison, traditional COVID-19 tests can take minutes or hours, depending on the type, and the COVID test and the dual flu test recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration take about half an hour to get results.

Akinwande and his group are improving its performance even further, including by expanding the list of viruses it can detect. With funding from the National Science Foundation, they are developing a sensor designed to test SARS-CoV-2 variants, such as omicron and delta. While they are currently focusing on a two-variable design, the test could be adapted to identify more at once, they say.

[ad_2]

Source link

Related Posts

Precaliga