Using structural DNA nanotechnology, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) have developed an ultrasensitive method for detecting dengue virus (DENV) in humans — a five-pointed star DNA structure that binds to DENV and fluoresces in its presence.
Dengue is quickly becoming one of the most severe mosquito-borne human pathogens, causing almost 390 million infections in tropical countries each year. A common existing detection method, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing, amplifies the transcript of the viral RNA genome to recognize its presence, while other tests detect antigens or antibodies produced by the human body in response to DENV or isolate the virus using cell cultures. All these methods have several factors in common: They are time-consuming, expensive, and require specialized laboratory equipment and skilled technicians to interpret the results.
The dengue virus itself has a spherical shape, with complex surface binding domains such as envelope binding domain 3 (ED3). These regions serve as latch points on the viral surface, adhering to the host...
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