A photoelectrochemical biosensor for rapid and ultrasensitive norovirus detection.

The highly contagious norovirus (NoV) is the most common causative agent of acute gastroenteritis, resulting in >200,000 deaths worldwide annually. A rapid and sensitive detection method is a prerequisite for effective prevention and timely identification of NoV contamination. In the present study, we developed a photoelectrochemical (PEC) biosensor coupled with a novel custom-made monoclonal antibody (mAb) for specific and sensitive NoV detection. Our system could detect levels of recombinant NoV capsid protein VP1 as low as 2 × 10 g mL (4.9 pM) within 30 min in a concentration-dependent manner. More importantly, the biosensor was versatile in detecting virus isolated from real samples that were as low as 46 copies μL. These findings indicate that this system has the potential to serve as a convenient point-of-care system for diagnosing NoV infection and detecting NoV-contaminated food samples.