Spanish scientists have createda “molecular velcro”which, on the one hand, adheres to gold and, on the other,traps molecules like hormones and viruses almost instantly, compared to other methods that require hours. The device is applicable to clinical analysis, infection detection and quality control in the pharmaceutical industry.
Researchers from the Immunogenetics group of the University of Jaén, together with the company Tharsis Biomed and the Nanobiosensors and analytical applications group of the Barcelona Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Research (CSIC), have implemented un biosensor based on a gold plate on which a protein is applied to capture antibodiesin an orderly manner. Antibodies are molecules that identify foreign substances and microorganisms that invade the body. This ability to detect molecules such as viruses or hormones is used by the chips developed by the Jaen researchers. “If we use a simile, our sensor is a molecular Velcro: on the one hand it adheres to the gold plate and on the other it allows for the capture of antibodies in an orderly manner”, as explained to the Discover Foundation by the researcher at the University of Jaén, Antonio Caruz.
This ordered orientation of the antibodies is precisely one of the innovations of the device. The molecules are positioned facing upwards, in the same direction, a characteristic that increases the sensitivity and precision of the sensor. Thesensors are developed to detect substances such as growth hormones or viruses in the blood in a few seconds. When they locate them, there is a change in the pattern of the sensor’s light, which indicates that it has discovered that protein or virus. Speed is one of the main advantages of the biosensor, which surpasses the traditional methods currently used called ELISA tests and which require several hours for analysis. “ELISA involves adding serum, waiting for it to react, washing, developing and reading the results, while our method is instantaneous. Saving the distances and, following a photographic simile, ELISA would be assimilated to the development of analog photography and ours to that of current digital cameras ”, clarifies Caruz, who has made the work known in the magazineAnalyst.
The use of proteins with the ability to bind to gold makes it more effective. In addition, this metal does not suffer wear, which entails a subsequent recycling of the support that can be used on multiple occasions, saving costs.
