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Review
. 2015 Aug:34:171-9.
doi: 10.1016/j.copbio.2015.01.009. Epub 2015 Feb 14.

Activatable nanoprobes for biomolecular detection

Pengcheng Zhang  1 , Andrew G Cheetham  1 , Lye Lin Lock  1 , Yaping Li  2 , Honggang Cui  3
Affiliations
Review

Activatable nanoprobes for biomolecular detection

Pengcheng Zhang et al. Curr Opin Biotechnol. 2015 Aug.

Abstract

Precise detection of pathologically relevant biomolecules could provide essential information on important intercellular, cellular, and subcellular events for accurate disease diagnosis and staging, thus leading to appropriate treatment recommendation. Activatable nanoprobes are nanoscale objects that can be turned on through specific reactions or interactions with biomolecules of interest, and afford some advantageous properties for improved detection of biomolecules both in vitro and in vivo. In this brief review, we highlight several recent examples in the development of activatable nanoprobes for biomolecule detection.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Generic illustration of the unique features offered by activatable nanoprobes for probing disease-relevant biomolecules. Inorganic nanoparticles can serve as universal quenchers for simultaneous detection of multiple biomolecules (1). Switchable signals from the inorganic nanoparticle itself can also serve as an indicator for the presence and activities of biomolecules of interest (2). Self-assembly of activatable molecular probes (3) or always-ON probes (4) can improve their chemical and structural stability, and also offer an additional activation mechanism. The use of additional nanoparticles as carriers could improve the accumulation of molecular probe in target tissues (5).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic illustration of using inorganic nanoparticles in the rational design of activatable nanoprobes. The inorganic nanoparticle can serve as a universal quencher for multiple fluorophores. Upon biorecognition (such as protein and/or RNA), the signals can be turned ON, allowing simultaneous detection of multiple biomolecules (a). The intrinsic signal from inorganic nanoparticles can also serve as an indicator for biomolecules based on biorecognition-induced perturbations
Figure 3
Figure 3
Schematic illustration of creating self-assembled supramolecular activatable nanoprobes. The nanoprobe could be formed by self-assembly of rationally designed molecular probes that are activatable upon their interaction with biomolecules (a). The nanoprobe could also be created using molecular probes without a quencher, and the signal can be turned ON by the dissociation process (b).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Schematic illustration of using nanostructures to deliver activatable nanoprobes. The nanocarrier could improve the pharmacokinetic profiles of the loaded probes, by both increasing their accumulation in targeted tissue and enhancing their ability to overcome physiological barriers.
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