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 × 10⁻¹⁰ g mL⁻¹ (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⁻¹. 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.