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Design and Fabrication of a Nanobiosensor for the Detection of Cell-Free Circulating miRNAS-LncRNAS-mRNAS Triad Grid
Pooja Ratre1, Nazim Nazeer1, Arpit Bhargava1,2
1Division of Environmental Biotechnology, Genetics & Molecular Biology, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal 462030, India.
Abstract:
The increased understanding of the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network in the onset and development of breast cancers has suggested their use as promising disease biomarkers. Keeping these RNAs as molecular targets, we designed and developed an optical nanobiosensor for specific detection of the miRNAs-LncRNAs-mRNAs triad grid in circulation. The sensor was formulated using three quantum dots (QDs), i.e., QD-705, QD-525, and GQDs. These QDs were surface-activated and modified with a target-specific probe. The results suggested the significant ability of the developed nanobiosensor to identify target RNAs in both isolated and plasma samples. Apart from the higher specificity and applicability, the assessment of the detection limit showed that the sensor could detect the target up to 1 fg concentration. After appropriate validation, the developed nanobiosensor might prove beneficial to characterizing and detecting aberrant disease-specific cell-free circulating miRNAs-lncRNAs-mRNAs.
Insights
Researchers developed a novel optical nanobiosensor for detecting circulating microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) linked to breast cancer. This sensor shows high specificity and sensitivity for potential early disease detection.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Molecular Biology
- Cancer Research
Background:
- The competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network plays a crucial role in breast cancer development.
- Dysregulation of miRNAs, lncRNAs, and mRNAs within the ceRNA network suggests their potential as biomarkers.
- Accurate detection of these circulating RNAs is vital for early breast cancer diagnosis and monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and develop a novel optical nanobiosensor for the specific detection of the miRNA-lncRNA-mRNA triad in circulation.
- To evaluate the sensor's performance in terms of specificity, applicability, and sensitivity for breast cancer biomarkers.
- To establish a potential tool for characterizing and detecting aberrant disease-specific cell-free circulating RNAs.
Main Methods:
- Formulation of an optical nanobiosensor using three types of quantum dots (QDs): QD-705, QD-525, and graphitic QDs (GQDs).
- Surface activation and modification of QDs with target-specific probes for enhanced RNA binding.
- Testing the nanobiosensor's ability to detect target RNAs in isolated samples and human plasma.
Main Results:
- The developed nanobiosensor demonstrated significant ability to identify target RNAs in both isolated and plasma samples.
- The sensor exhibited high specificity and broad applicability for detecting the miRNA-lncRNA-mRNA triad.
- The detection limit assessment revealed the sensor's capability to detect target RNAs at concentrations as low as 1 fg.
Conclusions:
- The novel optical nanobiosensor is effective for the specific detection of circulating miRNA-lncRNA-mRNA complexes.
- The sensor's high sensitivity and specificity make it a promising tool for breast cancer biomarker detection.
- Further validation could lead to the clinical application of this nanobiosensor for characterizing and detecting aberrant disease-specific cell-free circulating RNAs.
