Bead-based approaches for increased sensitivity and multiplexing of CRISPR diagnostics

This study developed two bead-based CRISPR-Cas13 diagnostic technologies. The bbLuc reporter achieved up to 20-fold greater sensitivity than conventional fluorescence-based reporting, while bbCARMEN detected nine respiratory viral targets in parallel with limits as low as 2.5 copies per microliter of input RNA. Clinical testing demonstrated the platforms’ potential for sensitive, multiplexed pathogen detection. The study included excess human nasopharyngeal swab specimens supplied by Boca Biolistics.

Siddiqui SM, Welch NL, Nguyen TG, et al. Bead-based approaches for increased sensitivity and multiplexing of CRISPR diagnostics. Nature Biomedical Engineering. 2026;10:939–951.