A Universal Electrochemical Biosensor Using Nick-HCR Nanostructure as Molecular Gate of Nanochannel for Detecting Chromium(III) Ions and MicroRNA

Anal Chem. 2019 Dec 3;91(23):14992-14999. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.9b03489. Epub 2019 Oct 18.

Abstract

Solid-state nanochannels demonstrating excellent mechanical properties and chemical stability combined with programmable DNA provide an opportunity to control on-demand ion transport. However, poor functionalization of the nanochannels limits the types of detected targets, as well as its universality in the sensing field. To solve these issues, a universal nanochannel sensing platform was developed by employing a nick hybridization chain reaction (nHCR) nanostructure as a molecular gate, which could generally respond to the universal sequence Y. Metal ion-dependent DNAzyme cleavage was used to transfer the chromium(III) (Cr3+) ions into nucleic acid X, which was further amplified and converted into universal sequence Y. Upon adding sequence Y into the nHCR nanostructure-functionalized nanochannel, the disassembly of the nHCR molecular gate turned on the ionic current signal inside the nanochannel. The ON-OFF ratio displayed a linear relationship with the Cr3+ concentration in the range from 200 fM to 20 nM. In less than 66 min, the nanochannel-based biosensing platform successfully detected Cr3+ ions as low as 200 fM. In addition, the detection of microRNA with a concentration as low as 1 pM was achieved by only regulating the sequence of template X'-Y'.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Biosensing Techniques / instrumentation*
  • Biosensing Techniques / methods
  • Chromium / analysis*
  • DNA, Catalytic / metabolism
  • Electrochemical Techniques / instrumentation
  • Electrochemical Techniques / methods
  • Ion Transport
  • Ions / analysis
  • Ions / metabolism
  • MicroRNAs / analysis*
  • Nanostructures / chemistry*

Substances

  • DNA, Catalytic
  • Ions
  • MicroRNAs
  • Chromium