Aptamers

Project Outline

Freshwater in the United States is becoming more endangered as urban populations grow and industries continue to develop at unprecedented rates. Despite years of banned use and improved practices, traditional pollutants such as PCB’s continue to persist, and new contaminants are emerging. While a number of methods already exist for detecting and measuring environmental contaminants, most require that the sample be transported back to the lab for analysis, which may compromise its integrity. This takes time, effort, and money. 

In order to address these concerns, synthetic DNA or RNA strands called aptamers are being developed for use in novel, inexpensive, efficient, and rapid biosensors for the in situ analysis of environmental pollutants. 

Aptamers are small synthetic DNA or RNA fragments that have high affinity and selectivity for their targets. They are produced by an in vitro selection process (Fig 1) [1,2]. Recently, aptamers have been employed in assays for the detection of proteins [2-3] and smaller biologically relevant targets such as antiboiotics. [3,4]; At present; however, there is a lack of research into the use of aptamers for environmental analysis [5-7].

The short term objectives of this research are to develop methods for selecting high affinity aptamers for environmental contaminants like perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The long term objectives are to develop rapid and easy to use aptamer-based biosensors for the monitoring of environmental samples such as drinking water, surface water, and industrial wastewater for harmful levels of environmental contaminants. 

References

[1] Hamula, C.L.A  et al, TrAC, (2006) 25 681-691. 

[2] Guthrie, J.W. et al, Methods, (2006) 38 324-330. 

[3] Xiao, Y. et al, J. Am. Chem. Soc. (2005) 127 

    17990-17991. 

[4] Wilson, D.S. et al, Ann. Rev. (1999) 68 611-647. 

[5] Nakamura, C. et al, Mol. Cryst. Liq. Cryst. (2001) 371,

    369-374. 

[6] Hofmann, H-P et al, RNA (1997) 3 1289-1300. 

[7] Mann, D.  et al, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm. 

    (2005) 338 1928-1934.