A direct method of detecting plant viruses using an aptamer based biochip has been proposed by scientists in Hungary. 

Apple stem pitting virus (ASPV) is a worldwide virus that has been associated with complex growth disorders in fruits. Routine methods to detect ASPV use biological indexing by grafting infected tissue onto indicator hosts, which can be complex and costly. Now a biosensor that can detect a characteristic protein of the virus in a fast, cheap and reproducible way has been developed by a team in Budapest led Róbert Gyurcsányi, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, and Tamás Mészáros, Semmelweis University, Budapest.

The infection can be diagnosed by identifying the unique proteins of the virus explains Gyurcsanyi. The team designed DNA aptamers, which they attached to gold surface plasmon resonance (SPR) chips, to target and bind to an ASPV specific protein. SPR imaging monitors the direct interaction of these aptamers with the protein and indicates the presence of the disease. 

'This research demonstrates the whole process of aptamer assay development from target to disease detection,' says Dr Gyurcsanyi. 'The combination of aptamer receptors and imaging SPR offers a novel sensing platform that meets the demand for fast and cost-effective detection.' 

David Russell, who researches immunoassays, at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK, comments, 'the combination of aptamer technology with SPR imaging is both interesting and novel, especially when studying viral activity. More excitingly, if this plant virus technology is convertible to more applied human viruses such as detecting the difference between avian flu and seasonal flu, it would provide a new avenue for diagnostics.' 

With the concept proven for plant disease proteins, the researchers say this technology could be used for aptamer based sensing of viral proteins in humans and animals. 

Michael Bonne 

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