Rapid detection of () is important for monitoring the presence of these bacteria in water sources and preventing the transmission of the Legionnaires' disease. We report improved biosensing of with a digital photocorrosion (DIP) biosensor functionalized with an innovative structure of cysteine-modified warnericin antimicrobial peptides for capturing bacteria that are subsequently decorated with anti- polyclonal antibodies (pAbs). The application of peptides for the operation of a biosensing device was enabled by the higher bacterial-capture efficiency of peptides compared to other traditional ligands, such as those based on antibodies or aptamers. At the same time, the significantly stronger affinity of pAbs ... More
Rapid detection of () is important for monitoring the presence of these bacteria in water sources and preventing the transmission of the Legionnaires' disease. We report improved biosensing of with a digital photocorrosion (DIP) biosensor functionalized with an innovative structure of cysteine-modified warnericin antimicrobial peptides for capturing bacteria that are subsequently decorated with anti- polyclonal antibodies (pAbs). The application of peptides for the operation of a biosensing device was enabled by the higher bacterial-capture efficiency of peptides compared to other traditional ligands, such as those based on antibodies or aptamers. At the same time, the significantly stronger affinity of pAbs decorating the serogroup-1 (SG-1) compared to serogroup-5 (SG-5) allowed for the selective detection of SG-1 at 50 CFU/mL. The results suggest that the attractive sensitivity of the investigated sandwich method is related to the flow of an extra electric charge between the pAb and a charge-sensing DIP biosensor. The method has the potential to offer highly specific and sensitive detection of as well as other pathogenic bacteria and viruses.
