The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has prompted an urgent demand for nanotechnological solutions towards the global healthcare crisis, particularly in the field of diagnostics, vaccines, and therapeutics. As an emerging tool for nanoscience and technology, micro/nanorobots have demonstrated advanced performances, such as self-propelling, precise maneuverability, and remote actuation, thus hold great potential to provide breakthroughs in the COVID-19 pandemic. Here we show a plasmonic-magnetic nanorobot-based simple and efficient COVID-19 detection assay through an electronic readout signal. The nanorobots consist of Fe3O4 backbone and the outer surface of Ag, that rationally designed to perform magnetic-powered propulsion and navigation, concomitantly the probe nucleic acids transport and release upon the hybridization which can be quantified with the differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) technique. The magnetically actuated nanorobots swarming enables enhanced micromixing and active targeting, thereby promoting binding kinetics. Experimental results verified the enhanced sensing efficiency, with nanomolar detection limit and high selectivity. Further testing with extracted SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA samples validated the clinical applicability of the proposed assay. This strategy is versatile to extend targeting various nucleic acids, thus it could be a promising detection tool for other emerging pathogens, environmental toxins, and forensic analytes.

Center for Advanced Functional Nanorobots Department of Inorganic Chemistry Faculty of Chemical Technology University of Chemistry and Technology Prague Technická 5 Prague CZ 166 28 Czech Republic

Department of Medical Research China Medical University Hospital China Medical University No 91 Hsueh Shih Road Taichung Taiwan

Future Energy and Innovation Laboratory Central European Institute of Technology Brno University of Technology Purkynova 656 123 Brno CZ 616 00 Czech Republic

Institute of Parasitology Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences Branisovska 31 Ceske Budejovice CZ 370 05 Czech Republic

Laboratory of Emerging Viral Infections Veterinary Research Institute Hudcova 70 Brno CZ 621 00 Czech Republic

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