Polydopamine functionalized dendritic fibrous silica nanoparticles as a generic platform for nucleic acid-based...

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Nanotechnology
• Molecular Biology

Background:

• Accurate nucleic acid detection is crucial for disease monitoring, clinical treatment, gene analysis, and drug discovery.
• Existing methods can be complex and time-consuming, necessitating simpler and more efficient detection strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a "turn-on" fluorescence biosensor for simple, highly efficient, and rapid detection of nucleic acid biomarkers.
• To utilize polydopamine-functionalized dendritic fibrous nanosilica (DFNS@DA) and FAM-ssDNA for enhanced signal transduction.

Main Methods:

• Utilized 6-carboxyfluorescein modified single-stranded DNA (FAM-ssDNA) as a molecular recognition element and signal reporter.
• Employed polydopamine-functionalized dendritic fibrous nanosilica (DFNS@DA) for strong binding and fluorescence quenching of FAM-ssDNA via FRET.
• Detected complementary target sequences by observing the release of FAM-ssDNA from DFNS@DA, leading to increased fluorescence emission.

Main Results:

• The developed biosensor demonstrated exceptional sensitivity, selectivity, and rapid response for nucleic acid sequence detection.
• The DFNS@DA material exhibited high adsorption and effective fluorescence quenching properties.
• Successfully detected microRNA (miR-21) in cancer cells as a proof of concept.

Conclusions:

• The FAM-ssDNA/DFNS@DA system offers a promising, generic, and cost-effective solution for nucleic acid biomarker detection.
• This approach highlights the potential of nanosilica-based materials and DNA probes in developing advanced biosensors.
• The developed biosensor system is suitable for various applications including disease monitoring and diagnostics.