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Updated: Jun 2, 2026

Combining QD-FRET and Microfluidics to Monitor DNA Nanocomplex Self-Assembly in Real-Time
Published on: August 26, 2009
Bivariate-gated DNA nanoreactors for high-fidelity amplified imaging of tumor cells
Kun Chen1, Ming Jin1, Jianghui Shi1
1Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Cytochemistry, School of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Engineering, School of Food Science and Bioengineering, Changsha University of Science & Technology, Changsha 410114, China. quanke518@CSUST.edu.cn.
Abstract:
Here, we report a bivariate-gated DNA nanoreactor enabling high-fidelity tumor cell imaging via amplified miRNA-21 detection. Endogenous apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1) activates toehold unlocking to prevent leakage, while spatial confinement excludes pre-miRNA interference. This strategy distinguishes cancer cells from normal cells with minimal false positives, enabling reliable cancer diagnostics.

