Fluorescent Immunochromatographic Assay (FICA) for Monkeypox Virus

Abstract

Monkeypox, a rare zoonotic disease classified as a category B infectious disease, is caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV), which has a broad host range. Since May 2022, human MPXV infection outbreak has spread to more than 100 countries, and China has reported 106 MPXV infections between June 2 and 30, 2023. Therefore, rapid and effective MPXV detection is essential to control and prevent its transmission. In this study, a rapid, cost-effective, and convenient fluorescent immunochromatographic assay (FICA) for MPXV antigen A35R detection was developed. Under the optimal reaction conditions, the visual detection limit of the proposed assay was 7.5 ng/mL and was completed within 15 min. There was no cross-reactivity with norovirus (NV) or dengue virus (DENV) controls. Additionally, the clinical application of the proposed method was demonstrated by testing human serum samples spiked with the MPXV antigen A35R. FICA was faster and more convenient than traditional enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) or polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and hence suitable for the early screening of MPXV infection. In summary, FICA could realize rapid, low-cost, sensitive, and specific MPXV detection hold potential application prospects in clinical settings.

Keywords:

• Fluorescent immunochromatographic assay (FICA)
• immunochromatographic strip
• monkeypox virus (MPXV)
• time resolved fluorescent microsphere (TRFM)

Authors’ contributions

Peipei Cao: Investigation, methodology, visualization, writing–original draft. Xiangde Lai: Investigation, methodology, visualization. Rui Zhang: Investigation. Zhiling Chen: Investigation. Bin Qiao: Supervision, writing–review & editing. Lina Niu: Resources, supervision, fund acquisition. Qiang Wu: Resources, supervision, and fund acquisition.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Hainan Province Science and Technology Special Fund under grant numbers ZDYF2022SHFZ114, ZDKJ2021029, and ZDYF2021SHFZ068, National Natural Science Foundation of China under grant numbers 82060377, 82060386, and 82272440, Hainan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China under grant numbers 820RC650 and 820RC647, and Innovative Research Projects for Postgraduate Students at Hainan Medical University under grant number HYYS2021A22.