Optical imaging spectroscopy for rapid, primary screening of SARS-CoV-2: a proof of concept

Gomez‑Gonzalez, Emilio; Barriga‑Rivera, Alejandro; Fernandez‑Muñoz, Beatriz; Navas‑Garcia, Jose Manuel; Fernandez‑Lizaranzu, Isabel; Muñoz‑Gonzalez, Francisco Javier; Parrilla‑Giraldez, Ruben; Requena‑Lancharro, Desiree; Gil‑Gamboa, Pedro; Rosell‑Valle, Cristina; Gomez‑Gonzalez, Carmen; Mayorga‑Buiza, Maria Jose; Martin‑Lopez, Maria; Muñoz, Olga; Gomez‑Martin, Juan Carlos; Relimpio Lopez, Maria Isabel; Aceituno‑Castro, Jesus; Perales‑Esteve, Manuel A.; Puppo‑Moreno, Antonio; Garcia‑Cozar, Francisco Jose; Olvera‑Collantes, Lucia; Gomez‑Diaz, Raquel; Santos‑Trigo, Silvia de los; Huguet‑Carrasco, Monserrat; Rey, Manuel; Gómez Gutiérrez, Emilia, 1975-; Sanchez‑Pernaute, Rosario; Padillo‑Ruiz, Javier; Marquez‑Rivas, Javier

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06393-3

Optical imaging spectroscopy for rapid, primary screening of SARS-CoV-2: a proof of concept

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Gomez‑Gonzalez E, Barriga‑Rivera A, Fernandez‑Muñoz B, Navas‑Garcia JM, Fernandez‑Lizaranzu I, Munoz‑Gonzalez FJ, Parrilla‑Giraldez R, Requena‑Lancharro D, Gil‑Gamboa P, Rosell-Valle C, Gomez‑Gonzalez C, Mayorga‑Buiza MJ, Martin‑Lopez M, Muñoz O, Gomez‑Martin JC, Relimpio‑Lopez MI, Aceituno‑Castro J, Perales‑Esteve MA, Puppo‑Moreno A, Garcia‑Cozar FJ, Olvera‑Collantes L, Gomez‑Diaz R, de los Santos‑Trigo S, Huguet‑Carrasco M, Rey M, Gomez E, Sanchez‑Pernaute R, Padillo‑Ruiz J, Marquez‑Rivas J. Optical imaging spectroscopy for rapid, primary screening of SARS-CoV-2: a proof of concept. Sci Rep. 2022;12:2356. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-06393-3

Abstract

Effective testing is essential to control the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission. Here we report a-proof-of-concept study on hyperspectral image analysis in the visible and near-infrared range for primary screening at the point-of-care of SARS-CoV-2. We apply spectral feature descriptors, partial least square-discriminant analysis, and artificial intelligence to extract information from optical diffuse reflectance measurements from 5 µL fluid samples at pixel, droplet, and patient levels. We discern preparations of engineered lentiviral particles pseudotyped with the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 from those with the G protein of the vesicular stomatitis virus in saline solution and artificial saliva. We report a quantitative analysis of 72 samples of nasopharyngeal exudate in a range of SARS-CoV-2 viral loads, and a descriptive study of another 32 fresh human saliva samples. Sensitivity for classification of exudates was 100% with peak specificity of 87.5% for discernment from PCR-negative but symptomatic cases. Proposed technology is reagent-free, fast, and scalable, and could substantially reduce the number of molecular tests currently required for COVID-19 mass screening strategies even in resource-limited settings.