Label Free MicroRNA Biomarker Detection in Serum Samples for Diagnosis Applications at Point-of Care

Abstract

Biomarker testing is the first step toward diagnosis of many diseases including cancer, cardiovascular and infections. In addition to traditional circulating biomarkers such as protein, DNA and RNA, microRNAs (miRNAs) could also be used to accurately map the disease related biological changes at tissue, organ or cellular level. One of the roadblocks for using miRNA in diagnosis is the accurate detection of panel of miRNA biomarkers in clinical samples. Current detection methods are expensive, lacking sensitivity and specificity for clinical samples. In addition, to minimize the degradation, miRNA need to be detected within 30 min of sample collection and current detection methods will take hours to days. To address this critical issue, we have developed a new method where we used molecular-field interactions to concentrate target miRNA near micro-electrodes in the disposable device. We then used electrical impedance to quantify the target miRNAs. Our results show that proposed method could detect miRNAs that are in pico-molar levels.