Molecular Elucidation of Disease Biomarkers at the Interface of Chemistry and Biology
- 7 February 2017
- journal article
- review article
- Published by American Chemical Society (ACS) in Journal of the American Chemical Society
- Vol. 139 (7), 2532-2540
- https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.6b10646
Abstract
Disease-related biomarkers are objectively measurable molecular signatures of physiological status that can serve as disease indicators or drug targets in clinical diagnosis and therapy, thus acting as a tool in support of personalized medicine. For example, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) biomarker is now widely used to screen patients for prostate cancer. However, few such biomarkers are currently available, and the process of biomarker identification and validation is prolonged and complicated by inefficient methods of discovery and few reliable analytical platforms. Therefore, in this Perspective, we look at the advanced chemistry of aptamer molecules and their significant role as molecular probes in biomarker studies. As a special class of functional nucleic acids evolved from an iterative technology termed Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX), these single-stranded oligonucleotides can recognize their respective targets with selectivity and affinity comparable to those of protein antibodies. Because of their fast turnaround time and exceptional chemical properties, aptamer probes can serve as novel molecular tools for biomarker investigations, particularly in assisting identification of new disease-related biomarkers. More importantly, aptamers are able to recognize biomarkers from complex biological environments such as blood serum and cell surfaces, which can provide direct evidence for further clinical applications. This Perspective highlights several major advancements of aptamer-based biomarker discovery strategies and their potential contribution to the practice of precision medicine.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Cancer Institute (CA133086)
- Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China (2011CB911000)
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (1327009, 21325520, 21505032)
- National Institute of General Medical Sciences (GM079359)
This publication has 116 references indexed in Scilit:
- In vivo SELEX for Identification of Brain-penetrating AptamersMolecular Therapy Nucleic Acids, 2013
- Activatable aptamer probe for contrast-enhanced in vivo cancer imaging based on cell membrane protein-triggered conformation alterationProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2011
- Aptamers Recognizing Glycosylated Hemagglutinin Expressed on the Surface of Vaccinia Virus-Infected CellsAnalytical Chemistry, 2010
- DNA aptamer–micelle as an efficient detection/delivery vehicle toward cancer cellsProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2009
- Aptamers Generated from Cell-SELEX for Molecular Medicine: A Chemical Biology ApproachAccounts of Chemical Research, 2009
- Identification of an aptamer targeting hnRNP A1 by tissue slide‐based SELEXThe Journal of Pathology, 2009
- Cell-Specific Aptamer Probes for Membrane Protein Elucidation in Cancer CellsJournal of Proteome Research, 2008
- Protein biomarker discovery and validation: the long and uncertain path to clinical utilityNature Biotechnology, 2006
- Aptamers evolved from live cells as effective molecular probes for cancer studyProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2006
- Multiplexed protein measurement: technologies and applications of protein and antibody arraysNature Reviews Drug Discovery, 2006