Recent Advances in Biological Applications of Aptamer-Based Fluorescent Biosensors.

Aptamers have been spotlighted as promising bio-recognition elements because they can be tailored to specific target molecules, bind to targets with a high affinity and specificity, and are easy to chemically synthesize and introduce functional groups to. In particular, fluorescent aptasensors are widely used in biological applications to diagnose diseases as well as prevent diseases by detecting cancer cells, viruses, and various biomarkers including nucleic acids and proteins as well as biotoxins and bacteria from food because they have the advantages of a high sensitivity, selectivity, rapidity, a simple detection process, and a low price. We introduce screening methods for isolating aptamers with q high specificity and summarize the sequences and affinities of the aptamers in a table.

Cancer Cell-Specific Enhanced Raman Imaging and Photothermal Therapeutic Effect Based on Reversibly pH-Responsive Gold Nanoparticles.

Stimuli-responsive nanoparticles are favorable for improving the selective delivery and rational vocation that easily avoids the undesirable barriers or side effects, leading to a further improved therapeutic efficiency. Furthermore, multifunctional nanomaterials have been extensively developed as attractive candidates for theranostic reagents for cancer treatment. In this article, we developed reversibly pH-responsive gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with an enhanced Raman scattering signal as well as an efficient photothermal effect and demonstrated their applications as a theranostic reagent for cancer treatment.