Aptamer-Based Biosensors Offer a Faster Alternative to ELISA

Aptamer-Based Biosensors Deliver Rapid ELISA-Level Diagnostics at Reduced Costs

In today’s fast‑paced world, consumers routinely order everything from groceries to gadgets via a smartphone. Yet critical health information about our own bodies can still face long waiting periods.

“As you look at something like what Amazon does, where they — they have their own pharmacy service,” said Robert Georgantas, a translational scientist and chief executive officer of eGlint, Inc. “They don’t have diagnostics. There isn’t a diagnostic platform that you can send home.”

With the aim of bridging this gap, scientists at eGlint, Inc. have developed a biosensor platform capable of measuring protein biomarkers from serum samples. Their technology delivers a 10‑minute test with the sensitivity of an enzyme‑linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) at a fraction of its cost.

The company earned first place in the BioTools Innovator program Capstone Event pitch finals held on October 14.

“I am surprised, and I’m incredibly grateful. I can’t believe that we won,” said Georgantas. “All the companies here are doing just amazing, amazing work, and I think everyone deserves to win in some way or another, so I’m incredibly grateful that the audience selected us.”

eGlint competed against three other biotech firms for a $250,000 prize. Georgantas added, “The program has been outstanding. The mentors and expertise the competition provided were truly transformative.”

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Engineering a Faster Protein Detection Platform

The earliest inspiration came almost a decade earlier, when biotechnologists Floyd Romesberg and Denis Malyshev – then a Scripps Research faculty member and graduate student – founded a company that later spun off to create eGlint, Inc. in 2021. Their goal was a diagnostic device similar to a phone plug: insert a cartridge, add five drops of finger‑prick blood, and run a clinical tests instantly.

However, the team hit a bottleneck while designing that instrument. At the time, there was a lack of multiplex proteomics that could be both fast, simple, and inexpensive while retaining the sensitivity and specificity of ELISA.

To resolve this, eGlint’s researchers adopted aptamers – short, single‑stranded nucleotide constructs engineered to bind specific biomarker proteins. They chemical‑tagged each aptamer end with a fluorescent reporter and a quenching group; in the unbound state the two ends pair internally, producing no signal. Heating disrupts this pairing and causes fluorescence, but a target biomactor prompts the aptamer to lock onto it, forming a more robust complex that resists thermal disruption. By measuring the temperature threshold needed to elapse, the system confirms presence or absence.

“I remember when I was 18 and worked in a laboratory, seeing my first PCR machine. My reaction was, ‘That’s so simple. Why didn’t I think of it?’” said Georgantas. “Watching this technology sparked the exact same response.”

After achieving ELISA‑level sensitivity, the duo focused on speed. Instead of immobilizing sensors on a plate like traditional ELISA, they engineered functional beads suspended in solution to hold the aptamers. These beads enable superior fluid dynamics and rapid mixing, cutting the incubation time dramatically and allowing users to employ existing real‑time PCR instruments for rapid readouts.

Building on that foundation, eGlint is currently prototyping a platform designed for at‑home phone‑based testing.

Accelerating Biomarker Analysis for Drug Development and Clinical Research

eGlint’s leadership has already distributed the aptamer‑based kit to several biopharmaceutical companies running clinical trials. A swift and sensitive proteomics workflow aids in identifying suitable patient cohorts and tracking drug response in real time. The company is also collaborating with vaccine manufacturers to provide an alternative to ELISA, a staple tool for detecting disease‑specific proteins.

Looking ahead, Georgantas envisions a paradigm shift across proteomics. “We have relied on methods like ELISA and mass spectrometry for 20 years,” he stated, noting his belief that the field stands on the cusp of a transformation comparable to how bead‑based sequencing once revolutionized proteomics.

“The era is ripe for solutions that are simpler, cheaper, and dramatically faster to implement,” said Georgantas. “We are building that streamlined proteomics capability that makes analysis as effortless as RNA sequencing or PCR.”

Equipped with the quarter‑million‑dollar award from the BioTools Innovator program, the firm plans to launch its first commercial product—a process‑monitoring panel for organizations developing cell therapies, antibodies, and related products. “We will use this capital to accelerate the rollout starting in early 2027,” added Georgantas.

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