The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2
Dengue infection, caused by the dengue virus, is a global threat which requires immediate attention and appropriate disease management. The current diagnosis of dengue infection is largely based on viral isolation, RT-PCR and serology-based detection, which are time-consuming and expensive, and requ...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Biology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/5/722 |
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| author | Ramesh Thevendran Sivalingam Rogini Glenn Leighton Atherton Mutombwera Sarah Shigdar Thean-Hock Tang Marimuthu Citartan |
| author_facet | Ramesh Thevendran Sivalingam Rogini Glenn Leighton Atherton Mutombwera Sarah Shigdar Thean-Hock Tang Marimuthu Citartan |
| author_sort | Ramesh Thevendran |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Dengue infection, caused by the dengue virus, is a global threat which requires immediate attention and appropriate disease management. The current diagnosis of dengue infection is largely based on viral isolation, RT-PCR and serology-based detection, which are time-consuming and expensive, and require trained personnel. For early diagnosis of dengue, the direct detection of a dengue antigenic target is efficacious, and one such target is NS1. NS1-based detection is primarily antibody-centric and is beset by drawbacks pertaining to antibodies such as the high cost of synthesis and large batch-to-batch variation. Aptamers are potential surrogates of antibodies and are much cheaper, without exhibiting batch-to-batch variation. Given these advantages, we sought to isolate RNA aptamers against the NS1 protein of dengue virus serotype 2. A total of 11 cycles of SELEX were carried out, resulting in two potent aptamers, DENV-3 and DENV-6, with dissociation constant values estimated at 37.57 ± 10.34 nM and 41.40 ± 9.29 nM, respectively. These aptamers can be further miniaturized to TDENV-3 and TDENV-6a with an increased LOD upon their usage in direct ELASA. Moreover, these truncated aptamers are highly specific against the dengue NS1 while showing no cross-reactivity against the NS1 of the Zika virus, the E2 protein of the Chikungunya virus or the LipL32 protein of Leptospira, with target selectivity retained even in human serum. The usage of TDENV-3 as the capturing probe and TDENV-6a as the detection probe underpinned the development of an aptamer-based sandwich ELASA for the detection of dengue NS1. The sensitivity of the sandwich ELASA was further improved with the stabilization of the truncated aptamers and the repeated incubation strategy, which enabled a LOD of 2 nM when used with the target NS1 spiked in human serum diluted at 1:2000. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T03:56:09Z |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-7737 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T03:56:09Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-dae455b3d0ee431a93525c0b7f49b03a2023-11-18T00:33:30ZengMDPI AGBiology2079-77372023-05-0112572210.3390/biology12050722The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2Ramesh Thevendran0Sivalingam Rogini1Glenn Leighton2Atherton Mutombwera3Sarah Shigdar4Thean-Hock Tang5Marimuthu Citartan6Department of Biomedical Science, Advanced Medical & Dental Institute (AMDI), University Sains Malaysia, Bertam, Kepala Batas 13200, MalaysiaDepartment of Biomedical Science, Advanced Medical & Dental Institute (AMDI), University Sains Malaysia, Bertam, Kepala Batas 13200, MalaysiaHutano Diagnostics Ltd. BioEscalator, Innovation Building, Old Road Campus, University of Oxford, Roosevelt Drive, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UKHutano Diagnostics Ltd. BioEscalator, Innovation Building, Old Road Campus, University of Oxford, Roosevelt Drive, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UKSchool of Medicine, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC 3217, AustraliaDepartment of Biomedical Science, Advanced Medical & Dental Institute (AMDI), University Sains Malaysia, Bertam, Kepala Batas 13200, MalaysiaDepartment of Biomedical Science, Advanced Medical & Dental Institute (AMDI), University Sains Malaysia, Bertam, Kepala Batas 13200, MalaysiaDengue infection, caused by the dengue virus, is a global threat which requires immediate attention and appropriate disease management. The current diagnosis of dengue infection is largely based on viral isolation, RT-PCR and serology-based detection, which are time-consuming and expensive, and require trained personnel. For early diagnosis of dengue, the direct detection of a dengue antigenic target is efficacious, and one such target is NS1. NS1-based detection is primarily antibody-centric and is beset by drawbacks pertaining to antibodies such as the high cost of synthesis and large batch-to-batch variation. Aptamers are potential surrogates of antibodies and are much cheaper, without exhibiting batch-to-batch variation. Given these advantages, we sought to isolate RNA aptamers against the NS1 protein of dengue virus serotype 2. A total of 11 cycles of SELEX were carried out, resulting in two potent aptamers, DENV-3 and DENV-6, with dissociation constant values estimated at 37.57 ± 10.34 nM and 41.40 ± 9.29 nM, respectively. These aptamers can be further miniaturized to TDENV-3 and TDENV-6a with an increased LOD upon their usage in direct ELASA. Moreover, these truncated aptamers are highly specific against the dengue NS1 while showing no cross-reactivity against the NS1 of the Zika virus, the E2 protein of the Chikungunya virus or the LipL32 protein of Leptospira, with target selectivity retained even in human serum. The usage of TDENV-3 as the capturing probe and TDENV-6a as the detection probe underpinned the development of an aptamer-based sandwich ELASA for the detection of dengue NS1. The sensitivity of the sandwich ELASA was further improved with the stabilization of the truncated aptamers and the repeated incubation strategy, which enabled a LOD of 2 nM when used with the target NS1 spiked in human serum diluted at 1:2000.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/5/722RNA aptamerstruncatedaptamer-based ELASA assay |
| spellingShingle | Ramesh Thevendran Sivalingam Rogini Glenn Leighton Atherton Mutombwera Sarah Shigdar Thean-Hock Tang Marimuthu Citartan The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 Biology RNA aptamers truncated aptamer-based ELASA assay |
| title | The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 |
| title_full | The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 |
| title_fullStr | The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 |
| title_short | The Diagnostic Potential of RNA Aptamers against the NS1 Protein of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 |
| title_sort | diagnostic potential of rna aptamers against the ns1 protein of dengue virus serotype 2 |
| topic | RNA aptamers truncated aptamer-based ELASA assay |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/5/722 |
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