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Target Recycling Transcription of Lighting-Up RNA Aptamers for Highly Sensitive and Label-Free Detection of ATP

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Abstract

We describe here a target recycling transcription of lighting-up aptamer strategy for detecting ATP in human serums in a label-free means with high sensitivity. ATP molecules specifically recognize the binding aptamer and result in the structure switching of the DNA assembly probes to imitate the target ATP molecule recycling cycles through the toehold-mediated strand displacement reaction, which causes the formation of many dsDNAs containing the RNA promoter sequences for subsequent transcription generation of large amounts of lighting-up aptamers. The organic dye, malachite green, then associates with these lighting-up aptamers to produce significantly enhanced fluorescence signals, which can sensitively detect ATP within a dynamic range from 10 to 500 nM in a label-free way. The sensing approach shows a detection limit of 7.3 nM and also has an excellent selectivity for ATP analogue molecules. In addition, this method can detect ATP molecules in diluted human serum samples sensitively, which proves the promising potential to diagnose ATP-related diseases.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (22004010), the Chongqing Science and Technology Commission of China (cstc2019jcyj-msxmX0196), the Science and Technology Research Program of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission (KJQN201901135) and the Scientific Research Foundation of Chongqing University of Technology (W. Zhou).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chongqing University of Technology, Chongqing, 400054, China

    Jia Lun He, Bing Ying Jiang & Wen Jiao Zhou

  2. Key Laboratory of Luminescence Analysis and Molecular Sensing, Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China

    Ruo Yuan & Yun Xiang

Authors
  1. Jia Lun He
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  2. Bing Ying Jiang
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  3. Wen Jiao Zhou
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  4. Ruo Yuan
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  5. Yun Xiang
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Wen Jiao Zhou or Yun Xiang.

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He, J.L., Jiang, B.Y., Zhou, W.J. et al. Target Recycling Transcription of Lighting-Up RNA Aptamers for Highly Sensitive and Label-Free Detection of ATP. J. Anal. Test. 5, 174–180 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41664-021-00170-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41664-021-00170-3

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