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Structured Nucleic Acid Probes for Electrochemical Devices
Author(s) -
MirandaCastro Rebeca,
delosSantosÁlvarez Noemí,
LoboCastañón María Jesús,
MirandaOrdieres Arturo J.,
TuñónBlanco Paulino
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
electroanalysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 128
eISSN - 1521-4109
pISSN - 1040-0397
DOI - 10.1002/elan.200904653
Subject(s) - nucleic acid , biosensor , folding (dsp implementation) , nanotechnology , toolbox , novelty , molecular recognition , chemistry , computational biology , computer science , combinatorial chemistry , biology , biochemistry , materials science , molecule , philosophy , theology , engineering , organic chemistry , electrical engineering , programming language
Abstract The use of nucleic acid with a specific sequence and a highly ordered secondary structure such as hairpins, quadruplexes and pseudoknots as biological recognition elements and switches in biosensors is rapidly increasing because of their improved features (e.g. selectivity) when compared with the traditional linear probes. Owing to the novelty, a critical outlook of their characteristics and a compilation of the latest advances are lacking. This article describes the potential of those nucleic acids probes whose molecular recognition ability relies on a conformational change (e.g. folding/unfolding mechanism) in electrochemical sensing. It provides an overview of the toolbox of assays using these probes for genosensors and aptasensors, highlighting its performance characteristics and the prospects and challenges for biosensor design.