Glycopolymer-Functionalized Gold Nanoparticles for the Detection of Western Diamondback Rattlesnake (<i>Crotalus atrox</i>) Venom

Every 5 minutes, 50 people are bitten by a snake worldwide; four will be permanently disabled and one will die. Most approaches to treating and diagnosing snake envenomation, a World Health Organization (WHO)-neglected tropical disease, rely on antibody-based solutions derived from animals or cell culture. Here, we present the first proof of concept for a glycopolymer-based ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) assay to detect snake venom, specifically Western Diamondback Rattlesnake (<i>Crotalus atrox</i>) venom. This was achieved by synthesizing a library of glycan-terminated poly(hydroxyethyl acrylamide) functionalized gold nanoparticles. The library was analyzed using UV-vis spectroscopy and biolayer interferometry, with galactose-terminating systems found to demonstrate specificity for <i>C.</i> <i>atrox</i> venom, versus model lectins and <i>Naja naja</i> venom in UV-vis assays. This corroborates glycan array data in the literature and highlights our glycopolymer systems' potential as a diagnostic tool for snakebite, with the best particle system displaying a limit of detection of ∼20 μg·mL^-1.