Magneto-assisted enzymatic DNA walkers for simultaneous electrochemical detection of amyloid-beta oligomers and Tau†

Abstract

DNA walkers have been widely explored and applied as biosensor elements to detect disease-related biomarkers. Traditional interface-anchored DNA walkers typically have a fixed swing arm range and an orientation of the preset track, which might complicate the design of a sensor system and limit its application in more scenes. We propose a simple electrochemical aptasensor to accurately detect Alzheimer's disease (AD) based on a nicking enzyme-powered DNA walker. In this method, bifunctional magnetic nanoparticles are used to identify and capture Aβ oligomers (AβO) and Tau and release the DNA walker. As the DNA walker moves freely on the surface of the electrode, the nicking enzymes circularly cleave and release the two signal substrate chains, significantly amplifying the signal. It has been demonstrated that the constructed sensor can sensitively detect AβO and Tau, and the combined analysis of dual markers improves the accuracy of AD diagnosis. Furthermore, this method can distinguish normal individuals from AD patients in real cerebrospinal fluid samples. The excellent performance of this biosensor makes it promising for clinical applications in diagnosing AD patients and prognosis assessment.