HIGHLY SENSITIVE, MULTIPLEXED, AND ACCESSIBLE DIGITAL PROTEIN MEASUREMENT WITH MAGDROPLEX

Highly sensitive and multiplexed protein detection is crucial across various biological contexts.The most advanced, digital enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (dELISA), has enabled 1000-fold increase in sensitivity over traditional immunoassays but involves sophisticated microfluidic devices for single bead trapping, has limited multiplexing capability, and lacks broad accessibility [1].To address these challenges, we present MagDroplex, an innovative approach that simplifies protein detection at single-molecule level while significantly enhancing multiplexing capability and accessibility.MagDroplex synergistically integrates magnetic proximity extension [2] and digital polymerase chain reaction (dPCR) to transform the detection of proteins into the quantification of single DNA molecules.By detecting DNA rather than enzyme labels, our approach eliminates precise bead control as required in dELISA, facilitates concurrent detection of multiple targets through various PCR multiplexing methodologies [3], and leverages the widespread adoption of dPCR technology for broader implementation.