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A highly sensitive strategy for glypican-3 detection based on aptamer/gold carbon dots/magnetic graphene oxide nanosheets as fluorescent biosensor

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Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in China. Glypican-3 (GPC3) is a specific antigen related to HCC, which is widely used in clinical detection as a reliable marker of HCC. In this paper, a highly sensitive homogeneous apatasensor was designed for GPC3 detection based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) where the GPC3 aptamer labelled gold carbon dots (AuCDs-GPC3Apt) are used as a donor and magnetic graphene oxide (Fe3O4/GO) nanosheets are used as an acceptor. A one-step hydrothermal method was used to synthesize AuCDs to provide sufficient fluorescence. The FRET phenomenon exists between AuCDs-GPC3Apt and Fe3O4/GO, which weakens the fluorescence intensity of the whole system. When the target GPC3 is added to the FRET system, the fluorescent AuCDs-GPC3Apt binds to the GPC3 and forms a folded structure, which leads to AuCDs-GPC3Apt separation from Fe3O4/GO nanosheets. The Fe3O4/GO is then magnetically separated so that the fluorescence of free labelled AuCDs-GPC3Apt is restored. Under the optimum conditions, the fluorescence recovery rate is linearly correlated with the concentration of GPC3 (5–100 ng·mL−1) and the detection limit is 3.01 ng·mL−1 (S/N = 3). This strategy shows recoveries from 98.76 to 101.29% in real human serum samples and provides an immediate and effective detection method for the quantification of GPC3 with great potential applications for early diagnosis of HCC.

Graphical abstract

A sensitive homogeneous FRET-based apatasensor was designed for GPC3 detection where the AuCDs-GPC3Apt is a donor and Fe3O4/GO nanosheets are an acceptor. The GPC3 fluorescent aptasensor combines wider output range with low cost, high specificity, and good anti-interference.

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Funding

This work was supported by the National Nature Science Foundation of China (Nos. 62161009 and 82073607), the Open Fund of Guangxi Key Laboratory of Bio-targeting Theranostics (Nos. GXSWBX201902 and GXSWBX201903), and the Open Fund of Guangxi Key Laboratory of Information Materials (No. 211022-K).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People’s Republic of China

    Guiyin Li, Wei Chen, Danhong Mi, Bo Wang, HaiMei Li, Guangxiong Wu, Jintao Liang & Zhide Zhou

  2. College of Chemistry, Guangdong University of Petrochemical Technology, Guandu Road, Maoming, Guangdong, 525000, People’s Republic of China

    Guiyin Li

  3. Xiang Ya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410078, People’s Republic of China

    Ping Ding

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  1. Guiyin Li
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  2. Wei Chen
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Correspondence to Ping Ding, Jintao Liang or Zhide Zhou.

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Li, G., Chen, W., Mi, D. et al. A highly sensitive strategy for glypican-3 detection based on aptamer/gold carbon dots/magnetic graphene oxide nanosheets as fluorescent biosensor. Anal Bioanal Chem 414, 6441–6453 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-022-04201-5

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