Ultrasensitive detection of nucleic acid with a CRISPR/Cas12a empowered electrochemical sensor based on antimonene

Abstract

Ultra-sensitive nucleic acid detection is important for rapid prevention of infectious diseases. Recently, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (Cas) systems with great target specificity and programmability have demonstrated amazing capabilities in the field of nucleic acid detection. However, most CRISPR/Cas systems-based strategies still rely on pre-amplification of nucleic acid, which limits their clinical application in point of care detection. Here, we designed a novel electrochemical CRISPR/Cas biosensor (called E-Sb CRISPR) that utilizes antimonene nanosheets (Sb NSs) modifications. Due to the strong interaction between Sb NSs and single stranded DNA (ssDNA), E-Sb CRISPR exhibited specific nucleic acid detection capabilities with a detection limit of 100 aM within 35 min. Notably, the sensor showed excellent selectivity to target DNA in serum in the presence of nucleus acid extracted from other viruses. The excellent stability (8 weeks) and reproducibility (50 cycles) of this sensor were observed. By developing microcircuits and software systems, rapid acquisition of detection results on mobile electronic devices is possible. Therefore, the E-Sb CRISPR showed great promise as a scalable nucleic acid detection platform for early diagnosis.