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Nanoscale Electrocatalytic DNA and Protein Detection

DNA, RNA, and protein sequences have been identified as biomarkers for different cancers. The levels of these species present in cells can report vital information about cancer risk, response to chemotherapeutic treatment, and prognosis.1 However, cancer testing is still somewhat rudimentary despite the wealth of information available, and commercial tests for these biomarkers are often not available. The development of diagnostic tests for the early detection of cancer has been hindered by the limited range of methods currently available for DNA and protein detection. Therefore, the pursuit of new analytical methods for DNA and protein detection that are amenable to multiplexing, automation, and high-throughput processing of small samples is a high priority in the biosensing community. This project focuses on a novel system for electrochemical detection of cancer-related DNA and DNA-repair protein targets using a unique nanoelectrode (NEE) platform that is prepared using a template synthesis method.2 The assay proposed relies on an electrocatalytic process involving two transition-metal ions (Ru(NH3)63+ and Fe(CN)63-) that reports on biomolecular complexation events (Figure 1). Single stranded DNA and/or DNA duplexes containing base lesion will be deposited on Au nanowires. This label-free universal method shows single-base resolution2 and attomole sensitivity4, 5 at 3D NEEs and is a promising sign that this approach will have significant advantages over traditional spectroscopy-based DNA diagnostic methods. Zeptomole detection limits and multiplexed electrocatalytic detection of DNA and DNA-repair proteins and the quantitation of cellular levels of DNA-binding proteins could be achieved using this 3D NEE platform.

DNA; RNA; Protein detection

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