Multidimensional sensor for pattern recognition of proteins based on DNA-gold nanoparticles conjugates

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry

Background:

• Developing sensitive and selective protein detection methods is crucial for diagnostics.
• Existing sensor platforms often lack the ability to distinguish between similar proteins or complex mixtures.
• Multidimensional sensing offers enhanced discrimination capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an extensible multidimensional sensor for protein discrimination.
• To utilize dual colorimetric and fluorescent signals for enhanced detection.
• To demonstrate the sensor's ability to differentiate proteins in complex biological samples.

Main Methods:

• Conjugating dye-labeled DNA sequences onto gold nanoparticles (DNA-AuNPs) as receptors.
• Utilizing competitive binding for protein-induced DNA displacement, causing color change and fluorescence.
• Employing linear discriminant analysis (LDA) for data interpretation and classification.

Main Results:

• The sensor achieved 100% accuracy in classifying eleven proteins at 50 nM concentration.
• Successfully discriminated between similar proteins like BSA and HSA, and their mixtures.
• Demonstrated 100% accuracy in discriminating ten proteins in human urine samples at 1.0 μM.

Conclusions:

• The extensible multidimensional sensor platform provides a novel approach for sensitive array-based sensing.
• The dual-channel sensing strategy significantly enhances protein discrimination power.
• This method offers a valuable complement to existing sensing systems for complex biological analyses.