Molecular Origins of Long-Term Changes in a Competitive Continuous Biosensor with Single-Molecule Resolution

Biosensing by particle motion is a biosensing technology that relies on single-molecule interactions and enables the continuous monitoring of analytes from picomolar to micromolar concentration levels. However, during sensor operation, the signals are observed to change gradually. Here, we present a comprehensive methodology to elucidate the molecular origins of long-term changes in a particle motion sensor, focusing on a competitive sensor design under conditions without flow. Experiments were performed wherein only the particles or only the surfaces were aged in order to clarify how each individual component changes over time. Furthermore, distributions of particle motion patterns and switching activity were studied to reveal how particle populations change over timespans of several days. For a cortisol sensor with anticortisol antibodies on the particles and cortisol analogues on the sensing surface, the leading hypotheses for the long-term changes are (i) that the particles lose antibodies and develop nonspecific interactions and (ii) that analogue molecules dissociate from the sensing surface. The developed methodologies and the acquired insights pave a way for realizing sensors that can operate over long timespans.