Development and performance assessment of a luminex xMAP® direct hybridization assay for the detection and identification of indoor air fungal contamination

Abstract

Considered as a public health problem, indoor fungal contamination is generally monitored using classical protocols based on culturing. However, this culture dependency could influence the representativeness of the fungal population detected in an analyzed sample as this includes the dead and uncultivable fraction. Moreover, culture-based protocols are often time-consuming. In this context, molecular tools are a powerful alternative, especially those allowing multiplexing. In this study a Luminex xMAP® assay was developed for the simultaneous detection of 10 fungal species which are most frequently in indoor air and that may cause health problems. This xMAP® assay was found to be sensitive, i.e. its limit of detection is ranging between 0.05 and 0.01 ng of gDNA. The assay was subsequently tested with environmental air samples which were also analyzed with a classical protocol. All the species identified with the classical method were also detected with the xMAP® assay, however in a shorter time frame. These results demonstrate that the Luminex xMAP® fungal assay developed in this study could contribute to the improvement of public health and specifically to the indoor fungal contamination treatment.

Biosensing with Polymerase Chain Reaction-Stable DNA-Functionalized Magnetically Susceptible Carbon–Iron Microparticles

“…Such beads capture target DNA by hybridization. This target DNA confers a fluorescent label on the bead surface with an LOD of 10–50 pg . In the present form, the coupling of PCR to this technique remains semiquantitative, i.e., positive or negative, but with low LODs and relative rapidity.…”

The next‐generation coronavirus diagnostic techniques with particular emphasis on the SARS‐CoV‐2

“…The Luminex xMAP technology was recently developed to do simultaneous detection of 10 fungal infections of major human concerns in hospitals' air through the direct hybridization technique. 191 In light of the high-efficiency hybridization technique, it would be visible to upgrade this hybridization step to make the detection of viruses on surfaces and the environment much easier.…”

“…Although the RT‐PCR remains the test of choice for the detection of the coronaviruses on the environmental samples, there is an urgent need for the development of novel assays that may detect the presence of viruses on those objects and surfaces and even in the air. The Luminex xMAP technology was recently developed to do simultaneous detection of 10 fungal infections of major human concerns in hospitals' air through the direct hybridization technique 191 . In light of the high‐efficiency hybridization technique, it would be visible to upgrade this hybridization step to make the detection of viruses on surfaces and the environment much easier.…”

“…Although the RT-PCR remains the test of choice for the detection of the coronaviruses on the environmental samples, there is an urgent need for the development of novel assays that may detect the presence of viruses on those objects and surfaces and even in the air. The Luminex xMAP technology was recently developed to do simultaneous detection of 10 fungal infections of major human concerns in hospitals' air through the direct hybridization technique 191. In light of the high-efficiency hybridization technique, it would be visible to upgrade this hybridization step to make the detection of viruses on surfaces and the environment much easier.Meanwhile, the fluorescent antibody technique was used extensively in coronavirus research for many reasons, especially the intracellular localization of various coronavirus proteins, pathological changes during the virus infection, as well as the signal transduction pathways in the context of coronavirus infections 110.…”