Researchers have developed an optical biosensor that can rapidly detect monkeypox, the virus that causes mpox. The technology could allow clinicians to diagnose the disease at the point of care rather than wait for lab results.

The researchers used samples collected from the lesions of a patient with laboratory-confirmed mpox. They briefly incubated the samples with monoclonal monkeypox antibodies provided by Ray’s lab that bind to proteins on the surface of the virus. The virus-antibody complex was then transferred into tiny chambers on the surface of silicon chips on the sensor that were treated to fix these nanoparticles.

Shining precise wavelengths of red and blue light simultaneously on the chips caused interference, which resulted in slightly different responses when the virus-antibody nanoparticles were present. A color camera was used to detect this small signal and count individual particles with high sensitivity.

The scientists also analyzed herpes simplex virus and cowpox virus samples, which have similar clinical presentations to mpox. The biosensor assay easily discriminated mpox samples from these other viruses, demonstrating that the specificity of the assay is essential for distinguishing mpox from these common viral diseases. (Image credit: iStock/inkoly)

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Topics:
Biosensors Medical Optics

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