Generating Aptamers by Cell-SELEX for Applications in Molecular Medicine

Mao Ye,Weihong Tan,Jing Liu,Jun Hu,Huixia Liu,Minyuan Peng,Xielan Zhao,Jun Liu

doi:10.3390/ijms13033341

Abstract

Aptamers are single-stranded oligonucleotides of DNA or RNA that bind to target molecules with high affinity and specificity. Typically, aptamers are generated by an iterative selection process, called systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX). Recent advancements in SELEX technology have extended aptamer selection from comparatively simple mixtures of purified proteins to whole living cells, and now cell-based SELEX (or cell-SELEX) can isolate aptamers that bind to specific target cells. Combined with nanotechnology, microchips, microfluidic devices, RNAi and other advanced technologies, cell-SELEX represents an integrated platform providing ultrasensitive and highly specific tools for clinical medicine. In this review, we describe the recent progress made in the application of cell-SELEX for diagnosis, therapy and biomarker discovery.

Highlights

Aptamers are single-stranded RNA or DNA sequences that bind to target molecules with high affinity and specificity
Generated aptamers exhibited high affinity and specificity for in vitro purified protein, it did not bind the full-length EGFRvIII protein expressed on the surface of eukaryotic cells, probably because a post-translational modification altered the structure of EGFRvIII
Aptamers generated by cell-systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) facilitate biomarker discovery for membrane protein

Summary

Introduction

Aptamers are single-stranded RNA or DNA sequences that bind to target molecules with high affinity and specificity. The binding affinity of aptamers to their targets is very high, with typical dissociation constants in the picomolar to nanomolar range, depending on the nature of the targets. Chemical modifications, such as 2'-fluoro and 2'-O-methyl substitutions, can enhance their biochemical stability against nuclease degradation [4,15] Their small size allows for rapid penetration into tissues and organs, with low toxicity and low immunogenicity, which may facilitate long-term therapeutic efficacy and safety. These unique biochemical properties make aptamers highly suitable for the detection, diagnosis and treatment of disease

Cell-SELEX

Cell-Specific Aptamers for Biomarker Discovery

Cell-Specific Aptamers for Targeted Cancer Therapy

Cancer Cell Enrichment and Detection Using Aptamers

Findings

Conclusion