Highly sensitive detection of protein with aptamer-based target-triggering two-stage amplification

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Molecular Biology
• Biomedical Diagnostics

Background:

• Protein detection is crucial for biomedical research and clinical diagnosis.
• Current antibody-based assays are often time-consuming, laborious, and lack sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a simple, sensitive, and rapid detection method for the biomarker protein platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF-BB).
• To overcome limitations of existing protein detection techniques.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an aptamer-based probe and an exponential amplification reaction (EXPAR) template.
• Combined strand displacement amplification (SDA) with EXPAR for two-stage signal amplification.
• Transformed target-induced aptamer conformational changes into a distinct fluorescence signal.

Main Results:

• Achieved a highly sensitive detection limit of 9.04 × 10⁻¹³ M for PDGF-BB.
• Demonstrated a wide detection range spanning over 5 orders of magnitude.
• Exhibited excellent specificity and sensitivity, outperforming existing methods.

Conclusions:

• The developed aptamer-based method provides a simple, rapid, and cost-effective approach for PDGF-BB detection.
• The assay operates under isothermal conditions, requiring no labeled probes or complex steps.
• This versatile method holds potential for detecting various other biomolecules using aptamer conformational changes.