1
|
Hasanzadeh A, Ebadati A, Saeedi S, Kamali B, Noori H, Jamei B, Hamblin MR, Liu Y, Karimi M. Nucleic acid-responsive smart systems for controlled cargo delivery. Biotechnol Adv 2024:108393. [PMID: 38825215 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2024.108393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2023] [Revised: 05/29/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
Stimulus-responsive delivery systems allow controlled, highly regulated, and efficient delivery of various cargos while minimizing side effects. Owing to the unique properties of nucleic acids, including the ability to adopt complex structures by base pairing, their easy synthesis, high specificity, shape memory, and configurability, they have been employed in autonomous molecular motors, logic circuits, reconfigurable nanoplatforms, and catalytic amplifiers. Moreover, the development of nucleic acid (NA)-responsive intelligent delivery vehicles is a rapidly growing field. These vehicles have attracted much attention in recent years due to their programmable, controllable, and reversible properties. In this work, we review several types of NA-responsive controlled delivery vehicles based on locks and keys, including DNA/RNA-responsive, aptamer-responsive, and CRISPR-responsive, and summarize their advantages and limitations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Akbar Hasanzadeh
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Arefeh Ebadati
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Merced, Merced, USA
| | - Sara Saeedi
- Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Neuroscience Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Babak Kamali
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hamid Noori
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Behnam Jamei
- Neuroscience Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Michael R Hamblin
- Laser Research Centre, Faculty of Health Science, University of Johannesburg, Doornfontein 2028, South Africa
| | - Yong Liu
- Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, China.
| | - Mahdi Karimi
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Medical Nanotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Oncopathology Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 1449614535, Iran; Research Center for Science and Technology in Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Applied Biotechnology Research Centre, Tehran Medical Science, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Léguillier V, Heddi B, Vidic J. Recent Advances in Aptamer-Based Biosensors for Bacterial Detection. BIOSENSORS 2024; 14:210. [PMID: 38785684 PMCID: PMC11117931 DOI: 10.3390/bios14050210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2024] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
The rapid and sensitive detection of pathogenic bacteria is becoming increasingly important for the timely prevention of contamination and the treatment of infections. Biosensors based on nucleic acid aptamers, integrated with optical, electrochemical, and mass-sensitive analytical techniques, have garnered intense interest because of their versatility, cost-efficiency, and ability to exhibit high affinity and specificity in binding bacterial biomarkers, toxins, and whole cells. This review highlights the development of aptamers, their structural characterization, and the chemical modifications enabling optimized recognition properties and enhanced stability in complex biological matrices. Furthermore, recent examples of aptasensors for the detection of bacterial cells, biomarkers, and toxins are discussed. Finally, we explore the barriers to and discuss perspectives on the application of aptamer-based bacterial detection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vincent Léguillier
- INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institut, Université Paris-Saclay, UMR 1319, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France;
- ENS Paris-Saclay, Laboratoire de Biologie et Pharmacologie Appliquée (LBPA), UMR8113 CNRS, 91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Brahim Heddi
- ENS Paris-Saclay, Laboratoire de Biologie et Pharmacologie Appliquée (LBPA), UMR8113 CNRS, 91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Jasmina Vidic
- INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institut, Université Paris-Saclay, UMR 1319, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France;
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Chen L, Yu Z, Wu Z, Zhou M, Wang Y, Yu X, Li W, Liu G, Tang Y. AptaDB: a comprehensive database integrating aptamer-target interactions. RNA (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2024; 30:189-199. [PMID: 38164624 PMCID: PMC10870366 DOI: 10.1261/rna.079784.123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Aptamers have emerged as research hotspots of the next generation due to excellent performance benefits and application potentials in pharmacology, medicine, and analytical chemistry. Despite the numerous aptamer investigations, the lack of comprehensive data integration has hindered the development of computational methods for aptamers and the reuse of aptamers. A public access database named AptaDB, derived from experimentally validated data manually collected from the literature, was hence developed, integrating comprehensive aptamer-related data, which include six key components: (i) experimentally validated aptamer-target interaction information, (ii) aptamer property information, (iii) structure information of aptamer, (iv) target information, (v) experimental activity information, and (vi) algorithmically calculated similar aptamers. AptaDB currently contains 1350 experimentally validated aptamer-target interactions, 1230 binding affinity constants, 1293 aptamer sequences, and more. Compared to other aptamer databases, it contains twice the number of entries found in available databases. The collection and integration of the above information categories is unique among available aptamer databases and provides a user-friendly interface. AptaDB will also be continuously updated as aptamer research evolves. We expect that AptaDB will become a powerful source for aptamer rational design and a valuable tool for aptamer screening in the future. For access to AptaDB, please visit http://lmmd.ecust.edu.cn/aptadb/.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Long Chen
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Zhuohang Yu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Zengrui Wu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Moran Zhou
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Yimeng Wang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Xinxin Yu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Weihua Li
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Guixia Liu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Yun Tang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Salimi A, Jang JH, Lee JY. Leveraging attention-enhanced variational autoencoders: Novel approach for investigating latent space of aptamer sequences. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 255:127884. [PMID: 37926303 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
Aptamers are increasingly recognized as potent alternatives to antibodies for diagnostic and therapeutic applications. The application of deep learning, particularly attention-based models, for aptamer (DNA/RNA) sequences is an innovative field. The ongoing advancements in aptamer sequencing technologies coupled with machine learning algorithms have resulted in novel developments. Further research is required to investigate the full potential of deep learning models and address the challenges associated with the generation of sequences, like the large search space of possible sequences. In this study, we propose a workflow that integrates an attention mechanism within a framework of a generative variational autoencoder, to generate novel sequences by expanding latent memory. They show 100 % novelty compared with the dataset, and approximately 88 % of them show negative values for the minimum free energy, which may indicate the likelihood of an RNA sequence folding into a functional structure. Because the field of aptamer discovery is affected by data scarcity, advanced strategies that facilitate the generation of diverse and superior sequences are necessitated. The utilization of our workflow can result in novel aptamers. Thus, investigations such as the present study can address the abovementioned challenge. Our research is anticipated to facilitate further discoveries and advancements in aptamer fields.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abbas Salimi
- Department of Chemistry, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, Republic of Korea
| | - Jee Hwan Jang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, Republic of Korea; Ucaretron Inc., No. 3508, 40, Simin-daero 365 beon-gil, Dongan-gu, Anyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea.
| | - Jin Yong Lee
- Department of Chemistry, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, Republic of Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Selvam R, Lim IHY, Lewis JC, Lim CH, Yap MKK, Tan HS. Selecting antibacterial aptamers against the BamA protein in Pseudomonas aeruginosa by incorporating genetic algorithm to optimise computational screening method. Sci Rep 2023; 13:7582. [PMID: 37164985 PMCID: PMC10170454 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-34643-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health resulting in an increasing number of people suffering from severe illnesses or dying due to infections that were once easily curable with antibiotics. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major pathogen that has rapidly developed antibiotic resistance and WHO has categorised this pathogen under the critical list. DNA aptamers can act as a potential candidate for novel antimicrobial agents. In this study, we demonstrated that an existing aptamer is able to affect the growth of P. aeruginosa. A computational screen for aptamers that could bind to a well-conserved and essential outer membrane protein, BamA in Gram-negative bacteria was conducted. Molecular docking of about 100 functional DNA aptamers with BamA protein was performed via both local and global docking approaches. Additionally, genetic algorithm analysis was carried out to rank the aptamers based on their binding affinity. The top hits of aptamers with good binding to BamA protein were synthesised to investigate their in vitro antibacterial activity. Among all aptamers, Apt31, which is known to bind to an antitumor, Daunomycin, exhibited the highest HADDOCK score and resulted in a significant (p < 0.05) reduction in P. aeruginosa growth. Apt31 also induced membrane disruption that resulted in DNA leakage. Hence, computational screening may result in the identification of aptamers that bind to the desired active site with high affinity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rupany Selvam
- School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Ian Han Yan Lim
- School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia
| | | | - Chern Hong Lim
- School of Information Technology, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia
| | | | - Hock Siew Tan
- School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia.
- Tropical Medicine and Biology Multidisciplinary Platform, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Malaysia.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
A review: Construction of aptamer screening methods based on improving the screening rate of key steps. Talanta 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2022.124003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
|
7
|
Perez Tobia J, Huang PJJ, Ding Y, Saran Narayan R, Narayan A, Liu J. Machine Learning Directed Aptamer Search from Conserved Primary Sequences and Secondary Structures. ACS Synth Biol 2023; 12:186-195. [PMID: 36594697 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.2c00462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Computer-aided prediction of aptamer sequences has been focused on primary sequence alignment and motif comparison. We observed that many aptamers have a conserved hairpin, yet the sequence of the hairpin can be highly variable. Taking such secondary structure information into consideration, a new algorithm combining conserved primary sequences and secondary structures is developed, which combines three scores based on sequence abundance, stability, and structure, respectively. This algorithm was used in the prediction of aptamers from the caffeine and theophylline selections. In the late rounds of the selections, when the libraries were converged, the predicted sequences matched well with the most abundant sequences. When the libraries were far from convergence and the sequences were deemed challenging for traditional analysis methods, this algorithm still predicted aptamer sequences that were experimentally verified by isothermal titration calorimetry. This algorithm paves a new way to look for patterns in aptamer selection libraries and mimics the sequence evolution process. It will help shorten the aptamer selection time and promote the biosensor and chemical biology applications of aptamers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Javier Perez Tobia
- Department of Computer Science, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, British Columbia V1V 1V7, Canada
| | - Po-Jung Jimmy Huang
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, Water Institute, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Yuzhe Ding
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, Water Institute, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Runjhun Saran Narayan
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, Water Institute, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Apurva Narayan
- Department of Computer Science, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, British Columbia V1V 1V7, Canada.,Department of Computer Science, Western University, London, Ontario N6A 3K7, Canada.,Systems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Juewen Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, Water Institute, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Moussa S, Kilgour M, Jans C, Hernandez-Garcia A, Cuperlovic-Culf M, Bengio Y, Simine L. Diversifying Design of Nucleic Acid Aptamers Using Unsupervised Machine Learning. J Phys Chem B 2023; 127:62-68. [PMID: 36574492 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c05660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Inverse design of short single-stranded RNA and DNA sequences (aptamers) is the task of finding sequences that satisfy a set of desired criteria. Relevant criteria may be, for example, the presence of specific folding motifs, binding to molecular ligands, sensing properties, and so on. Most practical approaches to aptamer design identify a small set of promising candidate sequences using high-throughput experiments (e.g., SELEX) and then optimize performance by introducing only minor modifications to the empirically found candidates. Sequences that possess the desired properties but differ drastically in chemical composition will add diversity to the search space and facilitate the discovery of useful nucleic acid aptamers. Systematic diversification protocols are needed. Here we propose to use an unsupervised machine learning model known as the Potts model to discover new, useful sequences with controllable sequence diversity. We start by training a Potts model using the maximum entropy principle on a small set of empirically identified sequences unified by a common feature. To generate new candidate sequences with a controllable degree of diversity, we take advantage of the model's spectral feature: an "energy" bandgap separating sequences that are similar to the training set from those that are distinct. By controlling the Potts energy range that is sampled, we generate sequences that are distinct from the training set yet still likely to have the encoded features. To demonstrate performance, we apply our approach to design diverse pools of sequences with specified secondary structure motifs in 30-mer RNA and DNA aptamers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Siba Moussa
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, QuebecH3A 0B8, Canada
| | - Michael Kilgour
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, QuebecH3A 0B8, Canada
| | - Clara Jans
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, QuebecH3A 0B8, Canada
| | - Alex Hernandez-Garcia
- Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms, 6666 St. Urbain, #200, Montreal, QuebecH2S 3H1, Canada
| | - Miroslava Cuperlovic-Culf
- Digital Technologies Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, OntarioK1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Yoshua Bengio
- Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms, 6666 St. Urbain, #200, Montreal, QuebecH2S 3H1, Canada
| | - Lena Simine
- Department of Chemistry, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, QuebecH3A 0B8, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Sun D, Sun M, Zhang J, Lin X, Zhang Y, Lin F, Zhang P, Yang C, Song J. Computational tools for aptamer identification and optimization. Trends Analyt Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.trac.2022.116767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
|
10
|
Nucleic Acid Aptamers Emerging as Modulators of G-Protein-Coupled Receptors: Challenge to Difficult Cell Surface Proteins. Cells 2022; 11:cells11111825. [PMID: 35681520 PMCID: PMC9180700 DOI: 10.3390/cells11111825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2022] [Revised: 05/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), among various cell surface proteins, are essential targets in the fields of basic science and drug discovery. The discovery and development of modulators for the receptors have provided deep insights into the mechanism of action of receptors and have led to a new therapeutic option for human diseases. Although various modulators against GPCRs have been developed to date, the identification of new modulators for GPCRs remains a challenge due to several technical problems and limitations. To overcome this situation, a variety of strategies have been developed by several modalities, including nucleic acid aptamers, which are emerging as unique molecules isolated by a repetitive selection process against various types of targets from an enormous combinatorial library. This review summarized the achievements in the development of aptamers targeting GPCRs, and discussed their isolation methods and the diverse functional features of aptamers against GPCRs.
Collapse
|