Establishing of a Method Combined Immunomagnetic Separation with Colloidal Gold Lateral Flow Assay and Its Application in Rapid Detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7

Nanobody-based immunomagnetic separation platform for rapid isolation and detection of Salmonella enteritidis in food samples

Rapid separation and identification of Salmonella enteritidis (S. enteritidis) in food is of great importance to prevent outbreaks of foodborne diseases. Herein, by using O and H antigens as targets, an epitope-based bio-panning strategy was applied to isolate specific nanobodies towards S. enteritidis. This method constitutes an efficient way to obtain specific antibody fragments and test pairwise nanobodies. On this basis, a double nanobody-based sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) coupled with immunomagnetic separation (IMS) was developed to rapid enrich and detect S. enteritidis in food. The detection limit of the IMS-ELISA was 3.2 × 10³ CFU/mL. In addition, 1 CFU of S. enteritidis in food samples can be detected after 4-h cultivation, which was shortened by 2 h after IMS. The IMS-ELISA strategy could avoid matrix interference and shorten the enrichment culture time, which has great potential for application in monitoring bacterial contamination in food.

Paper-based sensors for bacteria detection

The detection of pathogenic bacteria is essential to prevent and treat infections and to provide food security. Current gold-standard detection techniques, such as culture-based assays and polymerase chain reaction, are time-consuming and require centralized laboratories. Therefore, efforts have focused on developing point-of-care devices that are fast, cheap, portable and do not require specialized training. Paper-based analytical devices meet these criteria and are particularly suitable to deployment in low-resource settings. In this Review, we highlight paper-based analytical devices with substantial point-of-care applicability for bacteria detection and discuss challenges and opportunities for future development.

Single and multiple detections of foodborne pathogens by gold nanoparticle assays

A late detection of pathogenic microorganisms in food and drinking water has a high potential to cause adverse health impacts in those who have ingested the pathogens. For this reason there is intense interest in developing precise, rapid and sensitive assays that can detect multiple foodborne pathogens. Such assays would be valuable components in the campaign to minimize foodborne illness. Here, we discuss the emerging types of assays based on gold nanoparticles (GNPs) for rapidly diagnosing single or multiple foodborne pathogen infections. Colorimetric and lateral flow assays based on GNPs may be read by the human eye. Refractometric sensors based on a shift in the position of a plasmon resonance absorption peak can be read by the new generation of inexpensive optical spectrometers. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy and the quartz microbalance require slightly more sophisticated equipment but can be very sensitive. A wide range of electrochemical techniques are also under development. Given the range of options provided by GNPs, we confidently expect that some, or all, of these technologies will eventually enter routine use for detecting pathogens in food. This article is categorized under: Diagnostic Tools > Biosensing.

A Fluidic Device for Immunomagnetic Separation of Foodborne Bacteria Using Self-Assembled Magnetic Nanoparticle Chains

Immunomagnetic separation has been widely used for the separation and concentration of foodborne pathogens from complex food samples, however it can only handle a small volume of samples. In this paper, we presented a novel fluidic device for the specific and efficient separation and concentration of salmonellatyphimurium using self-assembled magnetic nanoparticle chains. The laminated sawtooth-shaped iron foils were first mounted in the 3D-printed matrix and magnetized by a strong magnet to generate dot-array high gradient magnetic fields in the fluidic channel, which was simulated using COMSOL (5.3a, Burlington, MA, USA). Then, magnetic nanoparticles with a diameter of 150 nm, which were modified with the anti-salmonella polyclonal antibodies, were injected into the channel, and the magnetic nanoparticle chains were vertically formed at the dots and verified using a fluorescence inverted microscope. Finally, the bacterial sample was continuous-flow injected, and the target bacteria could be captured by the antibodies on the chains, followed by gold standard culture plating to determine the amount of the target bacteria. Under the optimal conditions, the target bacteria could be separated with a separation efficiency of 80% in 45 min. This fluidic device could be further improved using thinner sawtooth-shaped iron foils and stronger magnets to obtain a better dot-array magnetic field with larger magnetic intensity and denser dot distribution, and has the potential to be integrated with the existing biological assays for rapid and sensitive detection of foodborne bacteria.

Double-enhanced lateral flow immunoassay for potato virus X based on a combination of magnetic and gold nanoparticles

This study presents the joint use of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and gold nanoparticles (GNPs) for double enhancement in a lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA). The study realizes two types of enhancement: (1) increasing the concentration of analytes in the samples using conjugates of MNPs with specific antibodies and (2) increasing the visibility of the label through MNP aggregation caused by GNPs. The proposed strategy was implemented using a LFIA for potato virus X (PVX), a significant potato pathogen. MNPs conjugated with biotinylated antibodies specific to PVX and GNPs conjugated with streptavidin were synthesized and characterized. The LFIAs with and without the proposed enhancements were compared. The double-enhanced LFIA achieved the highest sensitivity, equal to 0.25 ng mL^-1 and 32 times more sensitivity than the non-enhanced LFIA (detection limit: 8 ng mL^-1). LFIAs using one of the types of amplification (magnetic concentration without GNPs-causing aggregation or MNP aggregation without the concentration stage) showed intermediate levels of sensitivity. The double-enhanced LFIA was successfully used for PVX detection in potato leaves. The results for PVX detection in the infected plants were similar for the double-enhanced LFIA developed and the conventional LFIA based on the GNP conjugates; however, the new system provided significant coloring enhancement. This study confirmed that a simple combination of MNPs and GNPs has great potential for high-sensitivity detection and could possibly be adopted for LFIAs of other compounds.

Nanozyme-Mediated Dual Immunoassay Integrated with Smartphone for Use in Simultaneous Detection of Pathogens

Nanozymes are an excellent class of optical reporters for the development of sensitive biosensors for widespread applications. In this study, mesoporous core-shell palladium@platinum (Pd@Pt) nanoparticles were synthesized and then applied as signal amplifier in a dual lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) and integrated with a smartphone-based device for use in simultaneous detection of Salmonella Enteritidis and Escherichia coli O157:H7. After optimization, the limit of detections were calculated to be ∼20 cfu/mL for S. Enteritidis and ∼34 cfu/mL for E. coli O157:H7, respectively. The greatly improved sensitivity was contributed by the peroxidase-like catalytic activity of the Pd@Pt nanoparticles for signal enhancement and the parallel design of dual detection for eliminating the cross-interference. The estimated recoveries of the dual LFIA range from 91.44 to 117.00%, which indicated that the developed method is capable of detecting live bacteria in food samples. This approach provides an attractive platform for S. Enteritidis and E. coli O157:H7 detection using a smartphone-based device as the sole piece of equipment, indicating great promise for foodborne pathogen analysis or in-field food safety tracking.

Strategy for Accurate Detection of Escherichia Coli O157:H7 in Ground Pork Using a Lateral Flow Immunoassay

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is known to cause serious diseases including hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome. A gold nanoparticle lateral flow immunoassay (Au-LFIA) was used to detect Escherichia coli O157:H7 in ground pork samples. False-positive results were detected using Au-LFIA; a Citrobacter freundii strain was isolated from the ground pork samples and identified by using CHROmagar^TM plates, API 20E, and 16S RNA sequencing. Since C. freundii showed cross-reactivity with E. coli O157:H7 when Au-LFIA test strips were used, a novel method combining modified enrichment with a lateral flow immunoassay for accurate and convenient detection of E. coli O157:H7 in ground pork was developed in this study to minimize these false positives. MacConkey broth was optimized for E. coli O157:H7 enrichment and C. freundii inhibition by the addition of 5 mg/L potassium tellurite and 0.10 mg/L cefixime. Using the proposed modified enrichment procedure, the false-positive rate of ground pork samples spiked with 100 CFU/g C. freundii decreased to 5%.

Rapid and sensitive detection of Salmonella enteritidis by a pre-concentrated immunochromatographic assay in a large-volume sample system

A pre-concentrated immunochromatographic assay for Salmonella enteritidis (S. enteritidis) detection was developed based on the unique optical and magnetic properties of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs).

Rapid detection of Enterobacter cloacae by immunomagnetic separation and a colloidal gold-based immunochromatographic assay

This is the first study of detection of Enterobacter cloacae via combined immunomagnetic separation and a colloidal gold-based immunochromatographic assay.

A paper-based detection method of cancer cells using the photo-thermal effect of nanocomposite

A novel paper-based dot immune-graphene-gold filtration assay (DIGGFA) for the detection of breast cancer cells was developed based on the photo-thermal effect of graphene oxide (GO)-Au nanocomposite. Anti-EpCAM antibody which specific to the MCF-7 cell surface antigen, was immobilized on the nitrocellulose paper. The GO-Au-anti-EpCAM composite would interact with the MCF-7 cells captured on the nitrocellulose paper. After the test zone was irradiated by a laser, GO-Au nanocomposite could generate heat, temperature contrast was recorded and positive correlated with the cell number. Standard curve was prepared according to the temperature contrast and the cell number. Under optimal conditions, this method could detect a minimum of 600 MCF-7 cells with a near infrared laser and an infrared temperature gun within 15 min. This simple and rapid method could be applied to the clinical diagnosis in hospitals.

Novel strategies to enhance lateral flow immunoassay sensitivity for detecting foodborne pathogens

Food contaminated by foodborne pathogens causes diseases, affects individuals, and even kills those affected individuals. As such, rapid and sensitive detection methods should be developed to screen pathogens in food. One current detection method is lateral flow immunoassay, an efficient technique because of several advantages, including rapidity, simplicity, stability, portability, and sensitivity. This review presents the format and principle of lateral flow immunoassay strip and the development of conventional lateral flow immunoassay for detecting foodborne pathogens. Furthermore, novel strategies that can be applied to enhance the sensitivity of lateral flow immunoassay to detect foodborne pathogens are presented; these strategies include innovating new label application, designing new formats of lateral flow immunoassay, combining with other methods, and developing signal amplification systems. With these advancements, detection sensitivity and detection time can be greatly improved.

A remarkable sensitivity enhancement in a gold nanoparticle-based lateral flow immunoassay for the detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7

The size and uniformity of AuNPs were optimized to maximally amplify both visual inspection signals and quantitative data of LFA.