Recombinase Polymerase Amplification-Based Analytical Platforms for Rapid Detection of Foodborne Pathogenic Bacteria: Recent Advances, Challenges, and Perspectives
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: Foodborne pathogenic bacteria remain a major threat to food safety and public health, highlighting the need for rapid, sensitive, and field-deployable detection technologies. Conventional culture-based methods are reliable for confirmatory testing but are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and dependent on laboratory infrastructure. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods provide high sensitivity and specificity, yet their reliance on thermal cycling instruments and trained personnel limits decentralized use. Recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA), a low-temperature isothermal amplification technique, has attracted increasing attention because of its rapid reaction, simple instrumentation, and compatibility with diverse signal readouts. Recent RPA-based assays have progressed from single-target amplification toward integrated analytical platforms, including real-time fluorescence RPA, lateral flow RPA, multiplex RPA, RPA coupled with clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (Cas) systems, viable-cell-specific RPA, and sample-to-answer devices. These platforms have been applied to major pathogens such as Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes , Escherichia coli O157:H7, Campylobacter jejuni , Vibrio spp., Staphylococcus aureus , Shigella spp., Bacillus cereus , Clostridium perfringens , and Cronobacter sakazakii . This review evaluates RPA-based foodborne pathogen detection from a food analytical workflow perspective, covering amplification principles, analytical formats, pathogen-specific applications, current challenges, and future perspectives. Particular attention is given to matrix-compatible pretreatment, signal-readout design, nonspecific amplification, carryover contamination, multiplexing, viable/dead cell discrimination, and real-sample validation. The practical value of RPA depends less on amplification speed alone than on sample preparation, contamination-resistant formats, and standardized matrix-level validation, while culture-based methods remain necessary for confirmation and isolate recovery.
Source: Research Square
Authors: Wen Zhao, Yi Wang, Weijuan Li, Ying Yan, Xinjie Fan
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7204997581