Highly stable and reusable imprinted artificial antibody used for in situ detection and disinfection of pathogens

Abstract

Sandwich ELISA methods have been widely used for biomarker and pathogen detection because of their high specificity and sensitivity. However, the main drawbacks of this assay are the cost, the time-consuming procedure for the isolation of antibodies and their poor stability. To overcome these restrictions, we herein fabricated artificial antibodies based on imprinting technology and developed a sandwich ELISA for pathogen detection. Both the capture and detection antibodies were obtained via an in situ method, with simplicity, rapidity and low cost. The peroxidase mimics, the CeO₂ nanoparticles, as signal generators were integrated with the detection antibody. The fabricated artificial antibodies exhibited not only natural antibody-like binding affinities and selectivities, but also superior stability and reusability. The detection limit was about 500 CFU mL⁻¹, which is much lower than that of traditional ELISA methods (10⁴ to 10⁵ CFU mL⁻¹). Furthermore, the capture antibody can disinfect pathogens in situ.