Electrochemical Biosensors for SARS-CoV-2 Detection

Abstract

The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has become global. The unprecedented socioeconomic impact of the pandemic has highlighted the need to improve the existing diagnostic methods and develop new methods to control the spread of the disease. Traditional technologies such as quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) have been considered the gold standard for testing for COVID-19 since the SARS-CoV-2 genome sequence was published. However, they are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and do not guarantee the absence of false results. Electrochemical biosensors present alternative approaches to detect viral nucleic acids or viral antigens. The sensitivity and relatively low cost of the sensors and equipment, convenient management, rapid analysis, and suitability for miniaturization may contribute to the development of point-of-care (POC) testing for COVID-19. This review examines and critically discusses modern electrochemical biosensors for detecting SARS-CoV-2 and related technologies.