Current perspectives on aptamers as diagnostic tools and therapeutic agents
File(s)
Author(s)
Kumar Kulabhusan, Prabir
Hussain, Babar
Yuce, Meral
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Aptamers are synthetic single-stranded DNA or RNA sequences selected from combinatorial oligonucleotide libraries through the well-known in vitro selection and iteration process, SELEX. The last three decades have witnessed a sudden boom in aptamer research, owing to their unique characteristics, like high specificity and binding affinity, low immunogenicity and toxicity, and ease in synthesis with negligible batch-to-batch variation. Aptamers can specifically bind to the targets ranging from small molecules to complex structures, making them suitable for a myriad of diagnostic and therapeutic applications. In analytical scenarios, aptamers are used as molecular probes instead of antibodies. They have the potential in the detection of biomarkers, microorganisms, viral agents, environmental pollutants, or pathogens. For therapeutic purposes, aptamers can be further engineered with chemical stabilization and modification techniques, thus expanding their serum half-life and shelf life. A vast number of antagonistic aptamers or aptamer-based conjugates have been discovered so far through the in vitro selection procedure. However, the aptamers face several challenges for its successful clinical translation, and only particular aptamers have reached the marketplace so far. Aptamer research is still in a growing stage, and a deeper understanding of nucleic acid chemistry, target interaction, tissue distribution, and pharmacokinetics is required. In this review, we discussed aptamers in the current diagnostics and theranostics applications, while addressing the challenges associated with them. The report also sheds light on the implementation of aptamer conjugates for diagnostic purposes and, finally, the therapeutic aptamers under clinical investigation, challenges therein, and their future directions.
Date Issued
2020-07
Date Acceptance
2020-07-06
Citation
Pharmaceutics, 2020, 12 (7)
ISSN
1999-4923
Publisher
MDPI AG
Journal / Book Title
Pharmaceutics
Volume
12
Issue
7
Copyright Statement
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Identifier
https://www.webofscience.com/api/gateway?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000558157000001&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=a2bf6146997ec60c407a63945d4e92bb
Subjects
aptamer drugs
aptamer-drug conjugates
aptamers in clinical trials
aptamers in diagnostics
aptamer-targeted delivery
CANCER-CELLS
DNA APTAMERS
EXPONENTIAL ENRICHMENT
GENETIC ALPHABET EXPANSION
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
OLIGONUCLEOTIDE INHIBITOR
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
RNA APTAMERS
Science & Technology
SELECTION
SYSTEMATIC EVOLUTION
T-CELLS
VON-WILLEBRAND-FACTOR
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
646
Date Publish Online
2020-07-09