(164w) Yeast Surface Display of Sars-Cov-2 Receptor Binding Domain (RBD) for Diagnostic Purposes

Although the COVID-19 pandemic engendered global comradery for vaccine and anti-viral production, it exposed some of the challenges associated with the fast-track of the design of accurate diagnostics. We proposed that the inclusion of biosafety level 1 (BSL-1) capabilities in the arsenal to fight COVID-19 could include yeast surface display technology. First, Saccharomyces cerevisiae EBY100 was modified for surface display of SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD). Batch bioreactor culture was performed with selection media to produce the recombinant yeast, and simple centrifugation in contrast to centrifugation, lysis, and fractionation resulted in recovery of the potential diagnostic kit component. Confocal microscopy confirmed the decoration of the surface with RBD (and Green Fluorescent Protein, GFP, in separate cultures as a control). Experiments with lateral flow assays and dot blot assays demonstrated the decorated yeast served as positive and negative controls for the detection of SARS-CoV-2.