Picomolar detection of carbohydrate-lectin interactions on piezoelectrically printed microcantilever array

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Materials Science
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) offer potential for label-free detection (LFD) of analytes.
• Immobilizing biomolecules on inorganic surfaces without losing sensing ability is critical for LFD technologies.
• Covalent functionalization of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) enhances assay sensitivity, reproducibility, and surface stability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the use of 3-(glycidyloxypropyl)-trimethoxysilane (GOPTS) as a versatile SAM for covalent functionalization of SiO2 microcantilever arrays (MCAs).
• To demonstrate high-throughput immobilization of glycans onto MCAs for analyzing carbohydrate-lectin interactions.
• To establish MCAs as a robust, label-free, and scalable platform for analyzing these interactions.

Main Methods:

• Chemical vapor deposition of GOPTS SAMs onto SiO2 MCAs.
• Utilizing piezoelectric microarray printer technology for glycan immobilization.
• Assessing carbohydrate-lectin interactions with picogram sensitivity using LFD.

Main Results:

• GOPTS SAMs enable covalent functionalization of MCAs for sensitive detection.
• Glycan immobilization on MCAs is feasible using standard microarray printing.
• The developed MCA platform demonstrates picogram sensitivity for carbohydrate-lectin interactions.

Conclusions:

• GOPTS SAMs provide a suitable biofunctionalization strategy for MEMS-based LFD.
• This work presents a proof of principle for scalable, high-resolution, high-throughput LFD platforms.
• The methodology can be extended to various LFD technologies for diverse biological and chemical sensing applications.