Sensitive Dual Electrochemical-Colorimetric Point-of-Care (POC) Sensor for the Rapid Detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Mycoplasma pneumoniae (M. pneumoniae) is a problem affecting the health of children and adolescents worldwide. Thus, there is a pressing need to construct a point-of-care (POC) method for the rapid detection of M. pneumoniae. In this work, a sensitive dual electrochemical-colorimetric POC sensor was constructed based on reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and a polyaniline (PANI) modified surface for the rapid diagnosis of M. pneumoniae. The POC sensor showed excellent performance with a sensitivity of 69.78 mV/pH. The pH measurement was minimally affected in the presence of interfering ions and the durability of the electrochemical sensor was 2.54 mV/d. The device was sensitive for M. pneumoniae from 102 copies/reaction to 105 copies/reaction and satisfactorily validated in 18 clinical specimens. The entire nucleic acid extraction and detection process was completed within 30 min which was 9 minutes less than the commercial fluorescence and colorimetric kits. More interestingly, the results were monitored by the electrochemical signal and solution color change. The results are expected to have a positive impact on the quantitative detection of M. pneumoniae and allow the rapid diagnosis of M. pneumoniae infections.