Use of Nanotrap particles for the capture and enrichment of Zika, chikungunya and dengue viruses in urine.
Authors: Lin Shih-Chao, Carey Brian D, Callahan Victoria, Lee Ji-Hyun, Bracci Nicole, Patnaik Anurag, Smith Amy K, Narayanan Aarthi, Lepene Benjamin, Kehn-Hall Kylene
Journal: PloS one
Summary
# Editorial Summary: Nanotrap Particles for Viral Detection in Equine and Other Species Nanotrap (NT) particles—hydrogel microspheres functionalised with chemical affinity baits—have previously demonstrated effectiveness in capturing arboviruses such as Rift Valley fever and Venezuelan equine encephalitis, but their utility for detecting other re-emerging arboviruses remained largely unexplored. Shih-Chao and colleagues evaluated three different NT particle formulations (functionalised with cibacron blue, acrylic acid, and reactive red 120) for their ability to enrich Zika, chikungunya, and dengue viruses from human urine samples using RT-qPCR. The CN1030 particle variant, conjugated with reactive red 120, proved most effective, recovering 8–16-fold greater viral genomic copies and demonstrating detection enhancement even at extremely low viral titres (100 PFU/mL for Zika, 10 PFU/mL for chikungunya); significantly, this formulation enriched all three viruses simultaneously in co-infection scenarios. A magnetic variant (CN3080) showed comparable capture efficiency in dose-dependent fashion, whilst in silico modelling confirmed superior binding affinity between reactive red 120 and viral envelope proteins compared with alternative baits. For equine professionals, this pre-processing technology holds particular relevance for enhanced diagnostic sensitivity in detecting arboviral infections in clinical samples, potentially improving case identification and disease surveillance during suspected outbreaks of vector-borne illness.
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Key Findings
- •CN1030 nanotrap particles conjugated with reactive red 120 recovered 8-16 fold greater genomic copies of Zika, chikungunya, and dengue viruses in spiked urine samples compared to other chemical baits
- •CN1030 particles enriched viral detection at low titers (100 PFU/mL for ZIKV, 10 PFU/mL for CHIKV) and simultaneously captured multiple viruses in co-infection settings
- •Magnetic nanotrap particles (CN3080) based on CN1030 demonstrated dose-dependent capture and enrichment of Zika and chikungunya viruses
- •In silico modeling confirmed reactive red 120 had greater affinity for Zika and chikungunya envelope proteins than acrylic acid