Integrating Mini-Valves with Electronics/Optics in a Portable Device for Virus Detection at the Point-of-Care

This work advances our previously developed Zika virus detection device into a portable, low-cost point-of-care (POC) system for detecting both human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV). By integrating valve-enabled nucleic acid extraction device with our newly developed real-time isothermal amplification, our system can provide quantitative viral load data in the field without the need for pipets or electrical outlets. We achieved detection limits of 4 copies/reaction for HIV using <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$50 \mu \mathrm{L}$</tex> sample and <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$4 \text{GE}/\mu \mathrm{L}$</tex> for CHIKV (using <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$1 \mu \mathrm{L}$</tex> sample), and clinical validation with patient samples further demonstrates its suitability for early viral detection in resource-limited settings.