Target-catalyzed dynamic assembly-based pyrene excimer switching for enzyme-free nucleic acid amplified detection

Because of the intrinsic importance of nucleic acid as biotargets, the simple and sensitive detection of nucleic acid is very essential for biological studies and medical diagnostics. Herein, a new strategy for enzyme-free nucleic acid amplified detection has been opened up by combining the signal-amplification capability of target-catalyzed dynamic assembly with the spatially sensitive fluorescent signal of the pyrene excimer. In this strategy, three metastable pyrene-labeled hairpin DNA probes were designed as assembly components, which were kinetically handicapped from cross-opening in the absence of the target DNA. However, in the presence of the target, the dynamic assembly of branched junctions was circularly catalyzed and accompanied by the switching of the pyrene excimer which emits at ~488 nm. Thus, the target DNA could be detected by this simple mix-and-detect amplification method, without expensive and perishable protein enzymes. A good detection capability exhibited with a detectable minimum target concentration of 10 pM, which was comparable to or even better than some reported enzyme-dependent amplification methods, and the potential for the target detection from complex fluids was verified. In addition, as a novel transformation of dynamic DNA assembly technology into enzyme-free signal-amplification analytical application, we infer that the proposed strategy will hold promising potential for application in a wider range of fields, including aptamer-based non-nucleic acid target sensing, biomedicine, and bioimaging.