INTEGRATED MICROFLUIDIC SELEX USING FREE SOLUTION ELECTROKINETICS.

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Molecular Biology
• Microfluidics

Background:

• Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX) is crucial for isolating aptamers.
• Conventional SELEX is labor-intensive and time-consuming.
• There is a need for more efficient and integrated SELEX methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a simplified microfluidic approach for aptamer isolation.
• To integrate affinity selection and amplification stages of SELEX on a single platform.
• To reduce the time and labor associated with SELEX.

Main Methods:

• Combined bead-based biochemical reactions with free solution electrokinetic oligonucleotide transfer.
• Integrated affinity selection and amplification for closed-loop oligonucleotide enrichment.
• Utilized on-chip loop closure and simple transfer processes for multi-round enrichment.

Main Results:

• Successfully isolated an aptamer pool against a protein target (IgA).
• Achieved significantly higher binding affinity compared to the starting library.
• Completed the entire SELEX process in approximately 4 hours.

Conclusions:

• The microfluidic approach offers a highly integrated and efficient method for aptamer discovery.
• This simplified SELEX process accelerates the development of aptamers for various applications.
• The on-chip integration eliminates the need for offline processes and complex components.