COVID-19 Diagnosis and SARS-CoV-2 Strain Identification by a Rapid, Multiplexed, Point-of-Care Antibody Microarray

Anal Chem. 2023 Apr 4;95(13):5610-5617. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c05180. Epub 2023 Mar 24.

Abstract

Antigen tests to detect SARS-CoV-2 have emerged as a promising rapid diagnostic method for COVID-19, but they are unable to differentiate between variants of concern (VOCs). Here, we report a rapid point-of-care test (POC-T), termed CoVariant-SPOT, that uses a set of antibodies that are either tolerant or intolerant to spike protein mutations to identify the likely SARS-CoV-2 strain concurrent with COVID-19 diagnosis using antibodies targeting the nucleocapsid protein. All reagents are incorporated into a portable, multiplexed, and sensitive diagnostic platform built upon a nonfouling polymer brush. To validate CoVariant-SPOT, we tested recombinant SARS-CoV-2 proteins, inactivated viruses, and nasopharyngeal swab samples from COVID-19 positive and negative individuals and showed that CoVariant-SPOT can readily distinguish between two VOCs: Delta and Omicron. We believe that CoVariant-SPOT can serve as a valuable adjunct to next-generation sequencing to rapidly identify variants using a scalable and deployable POC-T, thereby enhancing community surveillance efforts worldwide and informing treatment selection.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antibodies
  • COVID-19 Testing
  • COVID-19* / diagnosis
  • Humans
  • Point-of-Care Systems
  • SARS-CoV-2* / genetics

Substances

  • Antibodies