Whole-Cell Pseudomonas aeruginosa Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance Aptasensor

The detection of whole-cell Pseudomonas aeruginosa presents an intriguing challenge with direct applications in health care and the prevention of nosocomial infection. To address this problem, a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) based sensing platform was developed to detect whole-cell Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PAO1 using a surface-confined aptamer as an affinity reagent. Nanosphere lithography (NSL) was used to fabricate a sensor surface containing a hexagonal array of Au nanotriangles. The sensor surface was subsequently modified with biotinylated polyethylene glycol (Bt-PEG) thiol/PEG thiol (1:3), neutravidin, and biotinylated aptamer in a sandwich format. The 1:3 (v/v) ratio of Bt-PEG thiol/PEG thiol was specifically chosen to maximize PAO1 binding while minimizing nonspecific adsorption and steric hindrance. In contrast to prior whole-cell LSPR work, the LSPR wavelength shift was shown to be linearly related to bacterial concentration over the range of 10-10³ cfu mL^-1. This LSPR sensing platform is rapid (∼3 h for detection), sensitive (down to the level of a single bacterium), selective for detection of Pseudomonas strain PAO1 over other strains, and exhibits a clinically relevant dynamic range and excellent shelf life (≥2 months) when stored at ambient conditions. This versatile LSPR sensing platform should be extendable to a wide range of supermolecular analytes, including both bacteria and viruses, by switching affinity reagents, and it has potential to be used in point-of-care and field-based applications.