The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has challenged more scientists to detect viruses and to visualize virus-containing spots for diagnosis and infection control; however, detection principles of commercially available technologies are not optimal for visualization. Here, a convenient and universal homogeneous detection platform named proximity-unlocked luminescence by sequential enzymatic reactions from antibody and antibody/aptamer (PULSERAA) is developed. This is designed so that the signal appears only when the donor and acceptor are in proximity on the viral surface.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlthough IgG-free immunosensors are in high demand owing to ethical concerns, the development of convenient immunosensors that alternatively integrate recombinantly produced antibody fragments, such as single-chain variable fragments (scFvs), remains challenging. The low affinity of antibody fragments, unlike IgG, caused by monovalent binding to targets often leads to decreased sensitivity. We improved the affinity owing to the bivalent effect by fabricating a bivalent antibody-enzyme complex (AEC) composed of two scFvs and a single glucose dehydrogenase, and developed a rapid and convenient scFv-employed electrochemical detection system for the C-reactive protein (CRP), which is a homopentameric protein biomarker of systemic inflammation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDNA-protein complexes are attractive components with broad applications in various research fields, such as DNA aptamer-enzyme complexes as biosensing elements. However, noncovalent DNA-protein complexes often decrease detection sensitivity because they are highly susceptible to environmental conditions. In this study, we developed a versatile DNA-protein covalent-linking patch (D-Pclip) for fabricating covalent and stoichiometric DNA-protein complexes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHuman hemoglobin (Hb) is a biomarker of several diseases, and monitoring of Hb levels is required during emergent surgery. However, rapid and sensitive Hb detection methods are yet to be developed. The present study established a rapid, convenient, and highly sensitive detection method for Hb in human serum using a bivalent antibody-enzyme complex (AEC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAntibody-enzyme complexes (AECs) with binding ability to specific targets and catalytic activities to gain signals are known to be ideal sensing elements; however, AEC-based universal sensors applicable to point-of-care testing (POCT) have not yet been developed. Here, we achieved rapid and homogeneous electrochemical detection by fabricating a high-affinity bispecific AEC (bsAEC) using two Catcher/Tag systems. Recently, we reported a convenient and universal method to fabricate AECs using the SpyCatcher/SpyTag system.
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