1
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Wang Z, Chang D, Sargent EH, Kelley SO. Apta FastZ: An Algorithm for the Rapid Identification of Aptamers with Defined Binding Affinities. Anal Chem 2023; 95:17438-17443. [PMID: 37991715 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c02881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2023]
Abstract
Real-time biomolecular monitoring requires biosensors based on affinity reagents, such as aptamers, with moderate to low affinities for the best binding dynamics and signal gain. We recently reported Pro-SELEX, an approach that utilizes parallelized SELEX and high-content bioinformatics for the selection of aptamers with predefined binding affinities. The Pro-SELEX pipeline relies on an algorithm, termed AptaZ, that can predict the binding affinities of selected aptamers. The original AptaZ algorithm is computationally complex and slows the overall throughput of Pro-SELEX. Here, we present Apta FastZ, a rapid equivalent of AptaZ. The Apta FastZ algorithm considers the spare nature of the sequences from SELEX and is coded to avoid unnecessary comparison between sequences. As a result, Apta FastZ achieved a 10 to 40-fold faster computing speed compared to the original AptaZ algorithm while maintaining identical outcomes, allowing the bioinformatics to be completed within 1-10 h for large-scale data sets. We further validated the affinity of myeloperoxidase aptamers predicted by Apta FastZ by experiments and observed a high level of linear correlation between predicted scores and measured affinities. Taken together, the implementation of Apta FastZ could greatly accelerate the current Pro-SELEX workflow, allowing customized aptamers to be discovered within 3 days using preselected DNA libraries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zongjie Wang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, McCormick School of Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
| | - Dingran Chang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, Toronto M5S 3M2, Canada
| | - Edward H Sargent
- Department of Chemistry, Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- International Institute for Nanotechnology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, McCormick School of Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto M5S 3G4, Canada
| | - Shana O Kelley
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, McCormick School of Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, Toronto M5S 3M2, Canada
- Department of Chemistry, Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- International Institute for Nanotechnology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
- Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, United States
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2
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Alkhamis O, Canoura J, Willis C, Wang L, Perry J, Xiao Y. Comparison of Aptamer Signaling Mechanisms Reveals Disparities in Sensor Response and Strategies to Eliminate False Signals. J Am Chem Soc 2023. [PMID: 37217444 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c03640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Aptamers are nucleic acid-based affinity reagents that have been incorporated into a variety of molecular sensor formats. However, many aptamer sensors exhibit insufficient sensitivity and specificity for real-world applications, and although considerable effort has been dedicated to improving sensitivity, sensor specificity has remained largely neglected and understudied. In this work, we have developed a series of sensors using aptamers for the small-molecule drugs flunixin, fentanyl, and furanyl fentanyl and compare their performance─in particular, focusing on their specificity. Contrary to expectations, we observe that sensors using the same aptamer operating under the same physicochemical conditions produce divergent responses to interferents depending on their signal transduction mechanism. For instance, aptamer beacon sensors are susceptible to false-positives from interferents that weakly associate with DNA, while strand-displacement sensors suffer from false-negatives due to interferent-associated signal suppression when both the target and interferent are present. Biophysical analyses suggest that these effects arise from aptamer-interferent interactions that are either nonspecific or induce aptamer conformational changes that are distinct from those induced by true target-binding events. We also demonstrate strategies for improving the sensitivity and specificity of aptamer sensors with the development of a "hybrid beacon," wherein the incorporation of a complementary DNA competitor into an aptamer beacon selectively hinders interferent─but not target─binding and signaling, while simultaneously overcoming signal suppression by interferents. Our results highlight the need for systematic and thorough testing of aptamer sensor response and new aptamer selection methods that optimize specificity more effectively than traditional counter-SELEX.
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Affiliation(s)
- Obtin Alkhamis
- Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, 2620 Yarbrough Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States
| | - Juan Canoura
- Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, 2620 Yarbrough Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States
| | - Connor Willis
- Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, 2620 Yarbrough Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States
| | - Linlin Wang
- Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, 2620 Yarbrough Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States
| | - Jacob Perry
- Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, 2620 Yarbrough Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States
| | - Yi Xiao
- Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, 2620 Yarbrough Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States
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3
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Li W, Lu W, Liu Z. A phosphatase-recruiting bispecific antibody-aptamer chimera for enhanced suppression of tumor growth. Chem Commun (Camb) 2023; 59:6572-6575. [PMID: 37170857 DOI: 10.1039/d3cc01137b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
The development of agents against abnormal activation of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) for therapeutic interventions is in high demand. Using mesenchymal epithelial transition (Met) protein as a proof-of-concept RTK, here we developed a CD148-recruiting bispecific antibody-aptamer chimera for simultaneous inhibition of extra- and intra-cellular functions of Met in cancer cells. This chimera exhibited remarkable migration-suppressive and antiproliferative effects. This strategy is highly promising for developing kinase inhibitors for use in therapies of a broad range of cancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Li
- State Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China.
| | - Weihua Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China.
| | - Zhen Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China.
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4
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Ding Y, Liu J. Pushing Adenosine and ATP SELEX for DNA Aptamers with Nanomolar Affinity. J Am Chem Soc 2023; 145:7540-7547. [PMID: 36947745 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c00848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
The classical DNA aptamer for adenosine and ATP has been the most used small molecule binding aptamer for biosensing, imaging, and DNA nanotechnology. This sequence has recurred multiple times in previous aptamer selections, and all previous selections used a high concentration of ATP as the target. Herein, two separate selections were performed using adenosine and ATP as targets. By pushing the target concentrations down to the low micromolar range, two new aptamers with Kd as low as 230 nM were obtained, showing around 30-fold higher affinity compared to the classical aptamer. The classical aptamer sequence still dominated the library in the early rounds of the selections, but it was suppressed in the later rounds. The new aptamers bind to one target molecule instead of two. Mutation studies confirmed their secondary structures and specific binding. Using the deep sequencing data from the selections, long-standing questions such as the existence of one-site aptamers and mutation distribution in the classical aptamer were addressed. Comparisons were made with previously reported DNA aptamers for ATP. Finally, a strand-displacement biosensor was tested showing selectivity for adenosine and its nucleotides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuzhe Ding
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Juewen Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
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5
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Qi X, Zhang L, Wang X, Chen S, Wang X. A label-free colorimetric aptasensor based on an engineered chimeric aptamer and Au@FeP nanocomposites for the detection of kanamycin. Food Control 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2023.109700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/25/2023]
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6
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Zhang R, Wang P, Chang Y, Liu M. Total Bioaerosol Detection by Split Aptamer-Based Electrochemical Nanosensor Chips. Anal Chem 2022; 94:16752-16758. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c03460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Rui Zhang
- School of Environmental Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), Dalian POCT Laboratory, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Pu Wang
- School of Environmental Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), Dalian POCT Laboratory, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Yangyang Chang
- School of Environmental Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), Dalian POCT Laboratory, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Meng Liu
- School of Environmental Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (Ministry of Education), Dalian POCT Laboratory, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
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7
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Zhang P, Qin K, Lopez A, Li Z, Liu J. General Label-Free Fluorescent Aptamer Binding Assay Using Cationic Conjugated Polymers. Anal Chem 2022; 94:15456-15463. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c03564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Pengbo Zhang
- School of Chemistry and Biological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, China
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Ke Qin
- School of Chemistry and Biological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Anand Lopez
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Zhengping Li
- School of Chemistry and Biological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Juewen Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
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8
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Pan J, Deng F, Zeng L, Liu Z, Chen J. Target-mediated competitive hybridization of hairpin probes for kanamycin detection based on exonuclease III cleavage and DNAzyme catalysis. Anal Bioanal Chem 2022; 414:8255-8261. [PMID: 36178489 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-022-04354-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2022] [Revised: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Based on aptamer recognition and target-mediated competitive hybridization of hairpin probes, we developed a fluorescence sensor for kanamycin (KAN) detection. The aptamer and KAN binding will open hairpin H1 to release the trigger DNA fragment, which can initiate the competitive hybridization between hairpins H2 and H3. Then, exonuclease III (Exo III) can cleave H2 and H3 to produce numerous DNA3 and DNA4. Through the synergetic hybridization among DNA1, DNA2, DNA3, and DNA4, an active Mg2+-DNAzyme can be formed. The cleavage reaction toward FAM-BHQ-modified DNA2 will produce a high fluorescence signal for KAN assay. Through Exo III-guided cleavage and Mg2+-DNAzyme-based catalysis, the sensor exhibits high sensitivity, with a detection limit of 3.1 fM. This method is robust and has been applied to the detection of KAN in milk and water samples with good accuracy and reliability. Our developed fluorescence sensor exhibits the advantages of simple operation, high sensitivity, and good robustness, which are beneficial for KAN detection in food samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiafeng Pan
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, 410128, China
- National-Regional Joint Engineering Research Center for Soil Pollution Control and Remediation in South China, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Integrated Agro-Environmental Pollution Control and Management, Institute of Eco-Environmental and Soil Sciences, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510650, China
| | - Fang Deng
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, 410128, China
- National-Regional Joint Engineering Research Center for Soil Pollution Control and Remediation in South China, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Integrated Agro-Environmental Pollution Control and Management, Institute of Eco-Environmental and Soil Sciences, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510650, China
| | - Lingwen Zeng
- Guangdong Langyuan Biotechnology Co., LTD, Foshan, 528313, China
- School of Food Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, 528231, China
| | - Zhi Liu
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, 410128, China.
| | - Junhua Chen
- National-Regional Joint Engineering Research Center for Soil Pollution Control and Remediation in South China, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Integrated Agro-Environmental Pollution Control and Management, Institute of Eco-Environmental and Soil Sciences, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510650, China.
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9
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Li L, Ma R, Zhao Y, Wang L, Wang S, Mao X. Development of a colorimetric aptasensor fabricated with a group-specific aptamer and AuNPs@Fe2+ nanozyme for simultaneous detection of multiple diarrheic shellfish poisons. Talanta 2022; 246:123534. [DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2022.123534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 05/02/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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10
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Fluorescent Aptasensor for Highly Specific Detection of ATP Using a Newly Screened Aptamer. SENSORS 2022; 22:s22072425. [PMID: 35408040 PMCID: PMC9003339 DOI: 10.3390/s22072425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2022] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Owing to the significant roles of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in diverse biological processes, ATP level is used to research and evaluate the physiological processes of organisms. Aptamer-based biosensors have been widely reported to achieve this purpose, which are superior in their flexible biosensing mechanism, with a high sensitivity and good biocompatibility; however, the aptamers currently used for ATP detection have a poor ability to discriminate ATP from adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine monophosphate (AMP). Herein, an ATP-specific aptamer was screened and applied to construct a fluorescent aptasensor for ATP by using graphene oxide (GO) and strand displacement amplification (SDA). The fluorescence intensity of the sensor is linearly related to the concentration of ATP within 0.1 μM to 25 μM under optimal experimental conditions, and the detection limit is 33.85 nM. The biosensor exhibits a satisfactory specificity for ATP. Moreover, the experimental results indicate that the biosensor can be applied to determine the ATP in human serum. In conclusion, the screened aptamer and the biosensor have promising applications in the determination of the real energy charge level and ATP content in a complex biological system.
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11
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Kim JY, Jin CR, Kim HS, Park J, Choi YE. Fluorogenic "on-off" nanosensor based on dual-quenching effect for imaging intracellular metabolite of various microalgae. Biosens Bioelectron 2022; 198:113839. [PMID: 34856515 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2021.113839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2021] [Revised: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Sensing intracellular compounds such as ATP in living microalgal cells is of great importance in diverse fields. To achieve this, nanosensing platform composed of graphene oxide (GO) and ATP aptamer (APT) was applied to diverse microalgal cells (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, Chlorella vulgaris, Anabaena flos-aquae, and Ochromonas danica). The nanosized GO was characterized with atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The nanosensing platform (GO-APT) was prepared by attaching fluorophore-labeled APT to GO. GO-APT was applicable to only cell wall-deficient species (O. danica and mutant strains of C. reinhardtii) and the existence of flagella did not affect the uptake of the GO-APT by the cells. These results indicate that the cell wall is the primary barrier of GO-APT internalization for sensing application. To reduce the background fluorescence signal elicited by nonspecific displacement of the fluorophore-labeled probe, APT was modified as molecular beacon (MB) type (APTMB). Owing to the double quenching effect (by GO and quencher-labeled complementary sequence), the background signal significantly reduced. Cytotoxicity of GO-APTMB on the microalgal species was also tested. The application of GO-APTMB had no effect on the growth of microalgae. Given that diverse aptamer sequences had been screened, the sensing platform is not limited for detecting ATP only, but also can be applied to other metabolite imaging by simply changing the aptamer sequences. Our research will contribute to broadening the application of GO and aptamer beacon complex for intracellular metabolite imaging and detecting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jee Young Kim
- Division of Environmental Science & Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, 02841, South Korea
| | - Cho Rok Jin
- Division of Environmental Science & Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, 02841, South Korea
| | - Hyun Soo Kim
- Department of Electronic Engineering, Kwangwoon University, Seoul, 01897, South Korea
| | - Jaewon Park
- School of Microelectronics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
| | - Yoon-E Choi
- Division of Environmental Science & Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, 02841, South Korea.
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12
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Daems E, Moro G, Campos R, De Wael K. Mapping the gaps in chemical analysis for the characterisation of aptamer-target interactions. Trends Analyt Chem 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.trac.2021.116311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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13
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Yu H, Alkhamis O, Canoura J, Liu Y, Xiao Y. Advances and Challenges in Small‐Molecule DNA Aptamer Isolation, Characterization, and Sensor Development. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202008663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Haixiang Yu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Florida International University 11200 SW 8th Street Miami FL 33199 USA
| | - Obtin Alkhamis
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Florida International University 11200 SW 8th Street Miami FL 33199 USA
| | - Juan Canoura
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Florida International University 11200 SW 8th Street Miami FL 33199 USA
| | - Yingzhu Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Florida International University 11200 SW 8th Street Miami FL 33199 USA
| | - Yi Xiao
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Florida International University 11200 SW 8th Street Miami FL 33199 USA
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Yu H, Alkhamis O, Canoura J, Liu Y, Xiao Y. Advances and Challenges in Small-Molecule DNA Aptamer Isolation, Characterization, and Sensor Development. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021; 60:16800-16823. [PMID: 33559947 PMCID: PMC8292151 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202008663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 156] [Impact Index Per Article: 52.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Revised: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Aptamers are short oligonucleotides isolated in vitro from randomized libraries that can bind to specific molecules with high affinity, and offer a number of advantages relative to antibodies as biorecognition elements in biosensors. However, it remains difficult and labor-intensive to develop aptamer-based sensors for small-molecule detection. Here, we review the challenges and advances in the isolation and characterization of small-molecule-binding DNA aptamers and their use in sensors. First, we discuss in vitro methodologies for the isolation of aptamers, and provide guidance on selecting the appropriate strategy for generating aptamers with optimal binding properties for a given application. We next examine techniques for characterizing aptamer-target binding and structure. Afterwards, we discuss various small-molecule sensing platforms based on original or engineered aptamers, and their detection applications. Finally, we conclude with a general workflow to develop aptamer-based small-molecule sensors for real-world applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haixiang Yu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL, 33199, USA
| | - Obtin Alkhamis
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL, 33199, USA
| | - Juan Canoura
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL, 33199, USA
| | - Yingzhu Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL, 33199, USA
| | - Yi Xiao
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL, 33199, USA
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15
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Wang Z, Zhou X, Li Y, Huang Z, Han J, Xie G, Liu J. Sensing ATP: Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-67 Is Superior to Aptamers for Target Recognition. Anal Chem 2021; 93:7707-7713. [PMID: 33999595 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.1c00976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
In a typical biosensor, a biomolecule such as an aptamer is used for target recognition, and a nanomaterial is used for signal generation. Herein, we communicate a reverse system using a nanomaterial for target recognition and a DNA for signaling. We discovered that a classic metal-organic framework material, zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF)-67, has ultrahigh selectivity for recognizing adenosine triphosphate (ATP), allowing a fluorescently labeled DNA oligonucleotide to be used for signal generation. This sensor showed up to a 24-fold increase in fluorescence upon adding 1 mM ATP, while the fluorescence increase after adding adenosine or guanosine triphosphate was less than twofold. Its selectivity is much better than that of the ATP aptamer, which binds adenosine even better. Using isothermal titration calorimetry, the selective binding of ATP was independently verified. This sensor has a detection limit of 29 nM ATP and it can even detect ATP in serum. By replacing Co2+ with Zn2+ to form ZIF-8 or by using CoO, the selectivity for ATP was lost. Therefore, by sophisticated material design, ultrahigh selectivity for molecular recognition can be achieved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Wang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Natural Functional Molecule Chemistry of Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry & Materials Science, Northwest University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710127, China.,Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Xumei Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Natural Functional Molecule Chemistry of Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry & Materials Science, Northwest University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710127, China
| | - Yuqing Li
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Zhicheng Huang
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Jing Han
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Natural Functional Molecule Chemistry of Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry & Materials Science, Northwest University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710127, China
| | - Gang Xie
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Natural Functional Molecule Chemistry of Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry & Materials Science, Northwest University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710127, China
| | - Juewen Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
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Li Y, Liu J. Aptamer-based strategies for recognizing adenine, adenosine, ATP and related compounds. Analyst 2021; 145:6753-6768. [PMID: 32909556 DOI: 10.1039/d0an00886a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Adenine is a key nucleobase, adenosine is an endogenous regulator of the immune system, while adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the energy source of many biological reactions. Selective detection of these molecules is useful for understanding biological processes, biochemical reactions and signaling. Since 1993, various aptamers have been reported to bind to adenine and its derivatives. In addition, the adenine riboswitch was later discovered. This review summarizes the efforts for the selection of RNA and DNA aptamers for adenine derivatives, and we pay particular attention to the specificity of binding. In addition, other molecular recognition strategies based on rational sequence design are also introduced. Most of the work in the field was performed on the classic DNA aptamer for adenosine and ATP reported by the Szostak group. Based on this aptamer, some representative applications such as the design of fluorescent, colorimetric and electrochemical biosensors, intracellular imaging, and ATP-responsive materials are also described. In addition, we critically review the limit of the reported aptamers and also important problems in the field, which can give future research opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqing Li
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada.
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Liu X, Zhao Y, Li F. Nucleic acid-functionalized metal-organic framework for ultrasensitive immobilization-free photoelectrochemical biosensing. Biosens Bioelectron 2021; 173:112832. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2020.112832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 11/06/2020] [Accepted: 11/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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18
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Canoura J, Yu H, Alkhamis O, Roncancio D, Farhana R, Xiao Y. Accelerating Post-SELEX Aptamer Engineering Using Exonuclease Digestion. J Am Chem Soc 2021; 143:805-816. [PMID: 33378616 PMCID: PMC7855447 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.0c09559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) process enables the isolation of aptamers from random oligonucleotide libraries. However, it is generally difficult to identify the best aptamer from the resulting sequences, and the selected aptamers often exhibit suboptimal affinity and specificity. Post-SELEX aptamer engineering can improve aptamer performance, but current methods exhibit inherent bias and variable rates of success or require specialized instruments. Here, we describe a generalizable method that utilizes exonuclease III and exonuclease I to interrogate the binding properties of small-molecule-binding aptamers in a rapid, label-free assay. By analyzing an ochratoxin-binding DNA aptamer and six of its mutants, we determined that ligand binding alters the exonuclease digestion kinetics to an extent that closely correlates with the aptamer's ligand affinity. We then utilized this assay to enhance the binding characteristics of a DNA aptamer which binds indiscriminately to ATP, ADP, AMP, and adenosine. We screened 13 mutants derived from this aptamer against all these analogues and identified two new high-affinity aptamers that solely bind to adenosine. We incorporated these two aptamers directly into an electrochemical aptamer-based sensor, which achieved a detection limit of 1 μM adenosine in 50% serum. We also confirmed the generality of our method to characterize target-binding affinities of protein-binding aptamers. We believe our approach is generalizable for DNA aptamers regardless of sequence, structure, and length and could be readily adapted into an automated format for high-throughput engineering of small-molecule-binding aptamers to acquire those with improved binding properties suitable for various applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan Canoura
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest Eighth Street, Miami, Florida 33199, United States
| | - Haixiang Yu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest Eighth Street, Miami, Florida 33199, United States
| | - Obtin Alkhamis
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest Eighth Street, Miami, Florida 33199, United States
| | - Daniel Roncancio
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest Eighth Street, Miami, Florida 33199, United States
| | - Rifat Farhana
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest Eighth Street, Miami, Florida 33199, United States
| | - Yi Xiao
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest Eighth Street, Miami, Florida 33199, United States
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Yang L, Yin X, An B, Li F. Precise Capture and Direct Quantification of Tumor Exosomes via a Highly Efficient Dual-Aptamer Recognition-Assisted Ratiometric Immobilization-Free Electrochemical Strategy. Anal Chem 2020; 93:1709-1716. [PMID: 33369394 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 110] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Tumor exosomes are promising biomarkers for early cancer diagnosis in a noninvasive manner. However, precise capture and direct analysis of tumor-specific exosomes in complex biological samples are still challenging. Herein, we present a highly efficient dual-aptamer recognition system for precisely isolating and quantifying tumor exosomes from the complex biological environment based on hyperbranched DNA superstructure-facilitated signal amplification and ratiometric dual-signal strategies. When tumor exosomes were captured by the dual-aptamer recognition system, the cholesterol-modified DNA probe was anchored on the surface of the exosomes, activating DNA tetrahedron-based hyperbranched hybridization chain reaction to generate a sandwich complex. Then, the sandwich complex could bind a large number of Ru(NH3)63+ (Ru(III)), leading to a small amount of unbound Ru(III) left in the supernatant after magnetic separation. Hence, the redox reaction between Ru(II) and [Fe(CN)6]3- (Fe(III)) was significantly prevented, causing an obviously enhanced IFe(III)/IRu(III) value. Consequently, highly sensitive detection of tumor exosomes was achieved. The developed approach successfully realized direct isolation and analysis of tumor exosomes in complex sample media and human serum samples as well. More significantly, this ratiometric dual-signal mode and immobilization-free strategy effectively circumvented the systematic errors caused by external factors and the tedious probe immobilization processes, thus displaying the excellent performances of high reliability, improved accuracy, and easy manipulation. Overall, this approach is expected to offer novel ways for nondestructive early cancer diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Limin Yang
- College of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, People's Republic of China
| | - Xuehan Yin
- College of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, People's Republic of China
| | - Bin An
- College of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, People's Republic of China
| | - Feng Li
- College of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, People's Republic of China
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20
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Alkhamis O, Yang W, Farhana R, Yu H, Xiao Y. Label-free profiling of DNA aptamer-small molecule binding using T5 exonuclease. Nucleic Acids Res 2020; 48:e120. [PMID: 33053182 PMCID: PMC7672472 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkaa849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2020] [Revised: 09/04/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
In vitro aptamer isolation methods can yield hundreds of potential candidates, but selecting the optimal aptamer for a given application is challenging and laborious. Existing aptamer characterization methods either entail low-throughput analysis with sophisticated instrumentation, or offer the potential for higher throughput at the cost of providing a relatively increased risk of false-positive or -negative results. Here, we describe a novel method for accurately and sensitively evaluating the binding between DNA aptamers and small-molecule ligands in a high-throughput format without any aptamer engineering or labeling requirements. This approach is based on our new finding that ligand binding inhibits aptamer digestion by T5 exonuclease, where the extent of this inhibition correlates closely with the strength of aptamer-ligand binding. Our assay enables accurate and efficient screening of the ligand-binding profiles of individual aptamers, as well as the identification of the best target binders from a batch of aptamer candidates, independent of the ligands in question or the aptamer sequence and structure. We demonstrate the general applicability of this assay with a total of 106 aptamer-ligand pairs and validate these results with a gold-standard method. We expect that our assay can be readily expanded to characterize small-molecule-binding aptamers in an automated, high-throughput fashion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Obtin Alkhamis
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Weijuan Yang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Rifat Farhana
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Haixiang Yu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Yi Xiao
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, USA
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21
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Li Y, Liu J. Highly Specific Recognition of Guanosine Using Engineered Base-Excised Aptamers. Chemistry 2020; 26:13644-13651. [PMID: 32700427 DOI: 10.1002/chem.202001835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2020] [Revised: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Purines and their derivatives are highly important molecules in biology for nucleic acid synthesis, energy storage, and signaling. Although many DNA aptamers have been obtained for binding adenine derivatives such as adenosine, adenosine monophosphate, and adenosine triphosphate, success for the specific binding of guanosine has been limited. Instead of performing new aptamer selections, we report herein a base-excision strategy to engineer existing aptamers to bind guanosine. Both a Na+ -binding aptamer and the classical adenosine aptamer have been manipulated as base-excising scaffolds. A total of seven guanosine aptamers were designed, of which the G16-deleted Na+ aptamer showed the highest bindng specificity and affinity for guanosine with an apparent dissociation constant of 0.78 mm. Single monophosphate difference in the target molecule was also recognizable. The generality of both the aptamer scaffold and excised site were systematically studied. Overall, this work provides a few guanosine binding aptamers by using a non-SELEX method. It also provides deeper insights into the engineering of aptamers for molecular recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqing Li
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Juewen Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada
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Wang C, Wang X, Li C, Xu X, Ye W, Qiu G, Wang D. Silver mirror films deposited on well plates for SERS detection of multi-analytes: Aiming at 96-well technology. Talanta 2020; 222:121544. [PMID: 33167251 DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2020.121544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2020] [Revised: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
96-Well technology is associated with automated sample preparation and simultaneous analysis based on the low-cost well plate format. To explore the potential applications of 96-well technology in SERS detection, we examined the surface-bound electroless deposition procedure for the preparation of uniform and stable Ag mirror films on polydopamine (PDA)-coated well plates as active-SERS substrates. In the presented procedure, small Ag seeds assembled on PDA coating were employed as the surface-bound catalyst and provided the active sites for electroless Ag deposition. The high-quality Ag mirror films showed high performance in terms of sensitivity, uniformity, reproducibility and stability using rhodamine 6G (R6G) as the probe molecule. A remarkable enhancement factor of 3.41 × 108 was obtained. The relative standard deviations against well-by-well and batch-by-batch reproducibility were less than 5%. The SERS films on well plates were successfully used to quantify the amounts of organic dyes (R6G and malachite green) in environmental water samples and small biological molecules (adenosine triphosphate and adenine) in urine matrix, displaying satisfactory sensitivity, selectivity and recovery. Their limit of detection values were at nanomolar, even picomolar concentration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Changding Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry and Department of Chemistry, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Xiang Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry and Department of Chemistry, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Chen Li
- Department of Anatomy and Histology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Xiaohui Xu
- Lanzhou Institutes for Food and Drug Control, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Weichun Ye
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry and Department of Chemistry, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China.
| | - Guoyu Qiu
- Lanzhou Institutes for Food and Drug Control, Lanzhou, 730000, China.
| | - Degui Wang
- Department of Anatomy and Histology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China.
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