COVID-19 remains an ongoing issue across the globe, highlighting the need for a rapid, selective, and accurate sensor for SARS-CoV-2 and its emerging variants. The chemical specificity and signal amplification of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) could be advantageous for developing a quantitative assay for SARS-CoV-2 with improved speed and accuracy over current testing methods. Here, we have tackled the challenges associated with SERS detection of viruses. As viruses are large, multicomponent species, they can yield different SERS signals, but also other abundant biomolecules present in the sample can generate undesired signals. To improve selectivity in complex biological environments, we have employed peptides as capture probes for viral proteins and developed an angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) mimetic peptide-based SERS sensor for SARS-CoV-2. The unique vibrational signature of the spike protein bound to the peptide-modified surface is identified and used to construct a multivariate calibration model for quantification. The sensor demonstrates a 300 nM limit of detection and high selectivity in the presence of excess bovine serum albumin. This work provides the basis for designing a SERS-based assay for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 as well as engineering SERS biosensors for other viruses in the future.

中文翻译：

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捕捉新冠病毒：针对 SARS-CoV-2 设计肽修饰表面增强拉曼光谱传感器

COVID-19 仍然是全球范围内持续存在的一个问题，凸显了对 SARS-CoV-2 及其新兴变种的快速、选择性和准确传感器的需求。表面增强拉曼光谱 (SERS) 的化学特异性和信号放大可能有利于开发 SARS-CoV-2 的定量检测方法，与当前的测试方法相比，其速度和准确性更高。在这里，我们解决了与 SERS 病毒检测相关的挑战。由于病毒是大型多组分物种，它们可以产生不同的 SERS 信号，而且样品中存在的其他丰富的生物分子也可以产生不需要的信号。为了提高复杂生物环境中的选择性，我们采用肽作为病毒蛋白的捕获探针，并开发了一种基于血管紧张素转换酶 2 (ACE2) 模拟肽的 SARS-CoV-2 SERS 传感器。识别与肽修饰表面结合的刺突蛋白的独特振动特征，并用于构建用于定量的多变量校准模型。该传感器在存在过量牛血清白蛋白的情况下具有 300 nM 的检测限和高选择性。这项工作为设计基于 SERS 的检测方法来检测 SARS-CoV-2 以及未来为其他病毒设计 SERS 生物传感器奠定了基础。