A novel nanoprobe for the sensitive detection of Francisella tularensis

作者:Kim Ji eun; Seo Youngmin; Jeong Yoon; Hwang Mintai P; Hwang Jangsun; Choo Jaeburn; Hong Jong Wook; Jeon Jun Ho; Rhie Gi eun; Choi Jonghoon*
来源:Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2015, 298: 188-194.
DOI:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2015.05.041

摘要

Francisella tularensis is a human zoonotic pathogen and the causative agent of tularemia, a severe infectious disease. Given the extreme infectivity of F. tularensis and its potential to be used as a biological warfare agent, a fast and sensitive detection method is highly desirable. Herein, we construct a novel detection platform composed of two units: (I) Magnetic beads conjugated with multiple capturing antibodies against F. tularensis for its simple and rapid separation and (2) Genetically-engineered apoferritin protein constructs conjugated with multiple quantum dots and a detection antibody against F. tularensis for the amplification of signal. We demonstrate a 10-fold increase in the sensitivity relative to traditional lateral flow devices that utilize enzyme-based detection methods. We ultimately envision the use of our novel nanoprobe detection platform in future applications that require the highly-sensitive on-site detection of high-risk pathogens.

  • 出版日期2015-11-15