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Updated: Jan 30, 2026

Preparation of Exosomes for siRNA Delivery to Cancer Cells
Published on: December 5, 2018
Near-Infrared Afterglow Semiconducting Nano-Polycomplexes for the Multiplex Differentiation of Cancer Exosomes
Yan Lyu1, Dong Cui1, Jiaguo Huang1
1School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 637457, Singapore.
Abstract:
The detection of exosomes is promising for the early diagnosis of cancer. However, the development of suitable optical sensors remains challenging. We have developed the first luminescent nanosensor for the multiplex differentiation of cancer exosomes that bypasses real-time light excitation. The sensor is composed of a near-infrared semiconducting polyelectrolyte (ASPN) that forms a complex with a quencher-tagged aptamer. The afterglow signal of the nanocomplex (ASPNC), being initially quenched, is turned on in the presence of aptamer-targeted exosomes. Because detection of the afterglow takes place after the excitation, background signals are minimized, leading to an improved limit of detection that is nearly two orders of magnitude lower than that of fluorescence detection in cell culture media. Also, ASPNC can be easily tailored to detect different exosomal proteins by changing the aptamer sequence. This enables an orthogonal analysis of multiple exosome samples, potentially permitting an accurate identification of the cellular origin of exosomes for cancer diagnosis.
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