Detect molecules in blood as with antibodies but without using antibodies

What is it about?

We created a system that uses a DNA molecule that is able to recognize one and only one molecule, and when this molecule is present in our sample it emits visible light. The system works on plasma or whole blood. We used as proof of concept the protein thrombin, but if the adequate sequence of DNA is used the system can be used to recognize any type of molecule. For the system to work only a couple of milliliters of sample are needed and we were able to detect concentrations of thrombin as low as 0.1 micromolar. We named our assay Chimeric aptafluorescence assay CAFA.

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Why is it important?

It is important because many assays for clinical diagnostic or research purposes use antibodies and equipment, or ready-made kits that are expensive for certain clinical settings where a more robust technology may be needed. We propose an assay that can give origin to a robust method, that uses simpler equipment to detect molecules useful for clinical diagnostics or in situ detection for research, or commercial purposes.

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