Construction of a Quantum-Dot-Based FRET Nanosensor through Direct Encoding of Streptavidin-Binding RNA Aptamers for...

N6-Methyladenosine (m⁶A) demethylases can catalyze the removal of the methyl modification on m⁶A, and it is closely associated with the occurrence, proliferation, differentiation, and metastasis of malignancies. The m⁶A demethylases (e.g., fat mass and obesity-associated protein (FTO)) may act as a cancer biomarker and are crucial for anticancer drug screening and early clinical diagnosis. Herein, we demonstrate the construction of a quantum-dot-based Förster resonance energy-transfer (FRET) nanosensor through direct encoding of streptavidin-binding RNA aptamers (SA aptamers) for m⁶A demethylase detection. This nanosensor employs multiple Cy5-molecule-labeled SA aptamers as the building materials to construct the 605QD-RNA-Cy5 nanoassembly, and it exploits the hinder effect of m⁶A upon elongation and ligation reactions to distinguish m⁶A-containing RNA probes from demethylated RNA probes. When m⁶A demethylase is present, the m⁶A-containing RNA probes are demethylated to generate the demethylated RNA probes, initiating strand extension and ligation reactions to yield a complete transcription template for SA aptamers. Subsequently, a T7-assisted cascade transcription amplification reaction is activated to transcribe abundant SA aptamers with the incorporation of multiple Cy5 fluorophores. The Cy5-incorporated SA aptamers can self-assembly onto the streptavidin-coated 605QD surface to obtain the 605QD-SA aptamer-Cy5 nanoassemblies, resulting in the generation of distinct FRET signals. This nanosensor exhibits ultrahigh sensitivity and excellent specificity, and it can detect endogenous FTO at the single-cell level. Furthermore, this nanosensor can precisely measure enzyme kinetic parameters, screen m⁶A demethylase inhibitors, and differentiate the FTO expression between breast cancer patients and healthy individual tissues, offering a versatile platform for clinical diagnostic and drug discovery.