Update on the Development of Toehold Switch-Based Approach for Molecular Diagnostic Tests of COVID-19

Figure 1

Toehold switch-based diagnostics for SARS-CoV-2. (a) General scheme of toehold switch riboregulator. In the absence of trigger RNA (SARS-CoV-2 RNA), RBS and start codon are hidden in the hairpin loop structure and inaccessible to the ribosome. (b) In the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, the RBS and start codon are “released” to translate reporter genes, resulting in expression that acts as a signal detectable by naked eyes or specific instruments.

(a)

(b)