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Surface Active Agents

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Surfactants, named for their behavior at interfaces, positively adsorb at the interfaces of two phases, reducing interfacial tension. Their versatility as emulsifiers, detergents, and foaming agents stems from this ability. Surfactants, often termed amphiphiles, share the property of amphipathy, with molecules having both hydrophilic and hydrophobic portions. The hydrophilic part is called the head, and the hydrophobic part, including an elongated alkyl substituent, forms the tail.Surfactants...

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Phthalic Acid Ester-Binding DNA Aptamer Selection, Characterization, and Application to an Electrochemical Aptasensor

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Published on: March 21, 2018

Modulating the Substrate Selectivity of DNA Aptamers Using Surfactants.

Amberlyn M Peterson¹, Frank M Jahnke², Jennifer M Heemstra¹

¹Department of Chemistry and the Center for Cell and Genome Science, University of Utah , Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, United States.

Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids

|October 15, 2015

Summary

DNA aptamers demonstrate compatibility with surfactants, maintaining binding function and allowing for modulated selectivity. This expands aptamer applications in analytical methods.

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Area of Science:

Biochemistry
Molecular Biology
Analytical Chemistry

Background:

Nucleic acid aptamers offer advantages over antibodies, including production ease and thermal stability.
Protein-based affinity reagents like antibodies are susceptible to denaturation by surfactants.

Purpose of the Study:

To systematically investigate the compatibility of DNA aptamers with various surfactants.
To explore the potential of surfactants in modulating aptamer binding specificity.

Main Methods:

Testing DNA aptamer folding and binding in the presence of neutral and anionic surfactants.
Analyzing the effect of surfactants on aptamer-target interactions, including hydrophilic and hydrophobic targets.

Main Results:

Neutral and anionic surfactants minimally impact aptamer folding and binding of hydrophilic targets.
Surfactants can modulate aptamer substrate binding preferences, likely via micelle sequestration of hydrophobic targets.

Conclusions:

DNA aptamers exhibit significant compatibility with common surfactants, broadening their application range.
Surfactant-mediated modulation of aptamer binding offers a novel strategy for enhancing selectivity in analytical applications.