QCM mass underestimation in molecular biotechnology: Proximity ligation assay for norovirus detection as a case study

The development of piezoelectric mass-sensitive devices is based on the shift in resonance frequency that is proportional to the deposited mass. However, this holds true only for small, rigid masses, while it can result in mass underestimation for heavy, non-rigid masses. In this work, we demonstrate this 'missing mass' phenomenon by measurement of high molecular weight biomolecules on a Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM) platform. For this, we present a model bioassay consisting of a sandwich-type proximity ligation assay for the detection of norovirus-like particles, and its real-time build-up on QCM as an experimental evidence. Upon combination with a localized QCM platform, we explain the pronounced slipping effect in multilayer biological systems resulting in energy dissipation and subsequent mass underestimation. This helps in pointing out the limitations of mega-gravity field sensors for molecular diagnostics where absolute quantification of pathogen load becomes indispensable towards biosensing applications.