EAGER: MEMS Enabled Real Time Detection of Pathogens Viruses and Biomarkers

Micro-cantilever-based tools like variable Atomic Force Microscopies have been widely and successfully used in the field of Nano Science and Technology for decades. Based on vast available experimental results and expertise in multiple domains, there is a significant potential to use cantilever-based systems for detection of SARS-CoV-2 viruses binding by responding to the added mass. This approach will enable real time monitoring and handling the COVID-19 pandemic and will enable the observation of the infection and the transmission of the host for first time. However, the exploitation of cantilever devices for pathogen detection faces multiple hurdles, in addition to technical challenges, as high selectivity to the targeted virus or biomarker is required. To become practical these instruments need a technology for functionalization of the cantilevers that will make them stable in air and liquids for hours. This will allow the sensors to work in real time, thus breaking the current pathogen diagnostics paradigm.

In this project the PIs will develop such functionalization of existing micro-cantilevers. They will develop a method for small pitch immobilization of antibodies selectively on the surface of the active cantilevers. The proposed project explores function-driven design of materials and technology to address the problem of real time detection of active viruses like SARS-CoV-2. The integrated approach developed in this project is versatile and transferable in developing proteins/antibody coatings for many other applications. Moreover, the proposed project, with its integration of material synthesis, UV exposure/patterning, characterization, and performance evaluation in the targeted applications, will serve as an excellent educational platform for participating graduate students to experience the full range of challenges in the cross-linking domains of microelectronics, biochemistry and health.

Specifically, these goals will be achieved through the combination of coating of fluorescent tagged antibody solutions in combination with maskless UV photoinduced patterning for immobilization that ensures selective binding of active viruses on cantilevers. The versatile approach of the PIs will include application of different benzophenone class of compound radicals generated by UV light and capable of reliably binding the targeted spike protein's antibody at the molecular level. Specific goals of this project are the identification and testing of UV maskless technology for selective immobilization of spike protein antibodies on piezoresistive MEMS cantilevers as well as optimizing the parameters of the detection system in order to achieve short detection time and high sensitivity. To achieve noise-free operation, application-specific arrays of active and reference piezoresistive cantilevers will be used. To ensure detection of SARS-CoV-2 viruses in air/aerosol by affinity reactions, small pitch patterns will be selectively coated, exploiting maskless UV photoinduced protein immobilization of antibodies. Specifically, the PIs will focus on the selective functionalization of the optimized cantilevers in synergy with novel measuring methods for detecting the mass of ultra-small pathogens.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.