A novel strategy for enhancing the stability of aptamer conformations in heavy metal ion detection.

Background: Detection methods based on aptamer probes have great potential and progress in the field of rapid detection of heavy metal ions. However, the unstable conformation of aptamers often results in poor sensitivity due to the dissociation of aptamer-target complex in real environments.

Results: In this study, we developed a locking aptamer probe and combined it with AgInZnS quantum dots for the first time to detect cadmium ions.