A high-throughput multiplexed microfluidic device for COVID-19 serology assays.

The applications of serology tests to the virus SARS-CoV-2 are diverse, ranging from diagnosing COVID-19, understanding the humoral response to this disease, and estimating its prevalence in a population, to modeling the course of the pandemic. COVID-19 serology assays will significantly benefit from sensitive and reliable technologies that can process dozens of samples in parallel, thus reducing costs and time; however, they will also benefit from biosensors that can assess antibody reactivities to multiple SARS-CoV-2 antigens. Here, we report a high-throughput microfluidic device that can assess antibody reactivities against four SARS-CoV-2 antigens from up to 50 serum samples in parallel. This semi-automatic platform measures IgG and IgM levels against four SARS-CoV-2 proteins: the spike protein (S), the S1 subunit (S1), the receptor-binding domain (RBD), and the nucleocapsid (N). After assay optimization, we evaluated sera from infected individuals with COVID-19 and a cohort of archival samples from 2018. The assay achieved a sensitivity of 95% and a specificity of 91%. Nonetheless, both parameters increased to 100% when evaluating sera from individuals in the third week after symptom onset. To further assess our platform's utility, we monitored the antibody titers from 5 COVID-19 patients over a time course of several weeks. Our platform can aid in global efforts to control and understand COVID-19.

Use of Cross-Linked Poly(ethylene glycol)-Based Hydrogels for Protein Crystallization.

Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogels are highly biocompatible materials extensively used for biomedical and pharmaceutical applications, controlled drug release, and tissue engineering. In this work, PEG cross-linked hydrogels, synthesized under various conditions, were used to grow lysozyme crystals by the counterdiffusion technique. Crystallization experiments were conducted using a three-layer arrangement. Results demonstrated that PEG fibers were incorporated within lysozyme crystals controlling the final crystal shape. PEG hydrogels also induced the nucleation of lysozyme crystals to a higher extent than agarose. PEG hydrogels can also be used at higher concentrations (20-50% w/w) as a separation chamber (plug) in counterdiffusion experiments. In this case, PEG hydrogels control the diffusion of the crystallization agent and therefore may be used to tailor the supersaturation to fine-tune crystal size. As an example, insulin crystals were grown in 10% (w/w) PEG hydrogel. The resulting crystals were of an approximate size of 500 µm.