Point-of-care CRISPR/Cas nucleic acid detection: Recent advances, challenges and opportunities

Abstract

With the trend of moving genomic test from (medical) laboratories to on-site testing, there is a need for nucleic acid based diagnostic tools combining the sensitivity, specificity and flexibility of established genomic diagnostics with the ease, cost effectiveness and speed of isothermal amplification methods. A promising new genomic sensing method is Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)-associated nuclease (Cas)-based sensing. In this method Cas effector proteins are used as highly specific sequence recognition elements that can be combined with many different read-out methods for on-site point-of-care testing.

This review covers the technical aspects of integrating CRISPR/Cas technology in miniaturized sensors for analysis on-site. We start with a short introduction to CRISPR/Cas systems and the different effector proteins and continue with reviewing the recent developments of integrating CRISPR sensing in miniaturized sensors for point-of-care applications. Finally, we discuss the challenges of point-of-care CRISPR sensing and describe future research perspectives.

Graphical abstract

Highlights

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  Rapid and reliable detection of nucleic acid is critical in many different fields.

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  CRISPR/Cas effector protein complexes could be used for specific DNA detection without the need of complicated machinery and trained personnel in so-called point-of-care testing.

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  A short and comprehensive introduction to CRISPR sensing is given.

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  We review recent developments of integrating CRISPR sensing in Point-of-care devices.

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  The challenges of (point-of-care) CRISPR sensing are discussed.