Self-assembled Water-soluble Combinatorial Molecular Barcode Nanoarrays for Multiplexed Ligand Detection

Multiplexed and sensitive detection of different kinds of disease related biomolecules (e.g., RNA, proteins, lipids, sugars) is of great importance in the medical diagnostics field. Most of the current detection technologies utilize chip-based or particle-based platforms, incorporating a large number of probes for proteins or nucleic acids that are immobilized on a solid support in a spatially or spectrally addressable manner. Synthetic nano-architectures based on self-assembling DNA tiles progressed rapidly in the past few years, enabled by DNAs innate ability to self-assemble into highly ordered nanoscale structures based on the simple rules of Watson-Crick base pairing. Recently, it has been demonstrated that DNA tile molecules can self-assemble into millimeter sized 2-D lattice domains made from billions to trillions of individual building blocks. Researchers at ASU have recently developed a technology to create a combinatorial self-assembling DNA tiling nanoarray for multiplexed biosensing. Various types of nucleic acid tiles can be programmed and designed to assemble into specific nanoarray structures, with precisely controlled distances and relatively fixed spatial orientations. Nucleic acid molecular probes specific to a variety of different target species are bound to the tiling arrays through nucleic acid hybridization. These probes are linked to distinct fluorescent signals. Detection of the target by its probe changes the fluorescent emission of the array and thus allows for target identification. Potential Applications This technology can be used for a variety of applications involving detection of different biological molecules. In-vitro medical Diagnostics Proteomics Expression profiling Genetic assays Gene expression, SNP profiling, nucleic acid sequencing, single-cell profilingBenefits and Advantages Multiplexing enabling multi-component detection with single-excitation wavelength Versatility - allows simultaneous identification of proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids from a single sample solution Sensitivity potential for micron-size arrays with sub-nM detection limit Ease of Use Water solubility, fast binding kinetics of molecular probes to targets, rechargeability for repeated use, and small sample volumes make this technology easy to use. Download original PDFFor more information about the inventor(s) and their research, please see Dr. Yan's departmental webpageDr. Yan's laboratory webpage Dr. Liu's departmental webpage