A clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeat‐Cas12a‐based assay for rapid dengue virus monitoring in mosquito and clinical samples facilitating global collaborative surveillance and risk assessment to block dengue spreading

Abstract Dengue fever, an acute Aedes ‐borne infectious disease caused by the dengue virus (DENV), is a substantial global health challenge, necessitating the development of swift and effective surveillance methodologies. We have developed a Recombinase Aided Amplification (RAA)–Cas12a assay that exhibits superior analytical sensitivity compared with real‐time PCR while maintaining comparable specificity. In clinical specimen testing, the assay demonstrated a sensitivity of 92.3% and a specificity of 100%, using a signal‐to‐noise ratio of ≥2.0 as the positivity threshold. Furthermore, the RAA–Cas12a assay displayed remarkable sensitivity in detecting DENV in both adult and larval mosquitoes, with field data from mosquito surveillance aligning closely with the emergence of local dengue cases. Characterized by its simplicity, rapidity, and precision, the RAA–Cas12a approach emerges as a highly promising technology for monitoring virus carriage in field‐collected mosquitoes, thereby functioning as both an early warning system and a crucial indicator for effective dengue outbreak management. The practicality and cost‐effectiveness of this methodology provide a robust foundation for the establishment of an efficient global collaborative surveillance and risk assessment platform to mitigate the rapid spread of dengue.