Coauthored Publications with: Sriram

Journal Article

Dhenadhayalan, N, Yadav K, Sriram MI, Lee H-L, Lin K-C.  2017.  Ultra-sensitive DNA sensing of a prostate-specific antigen based on 2D nanosheets in live cells. Nanoscale. 9:12087-12095., Number 33 AbstractWebsite

Herein, we report ultra-sensitive sensing of a prostate-specific antigen (PSA), which is used as a biomarker to detect prostate cancer, using a molybdenum series (MoO3, MoS2, and MoSe2) of two-dimensional nanosheets (2D NSs). Moreover, the design of a 2D NS-based PSA aptamer sensor system was demonstrated based on a fluorescence turn-on mechanism in the presence of a target. The 2D NSs acted as an excellent sensing platform in which the PSA aptamer was adsorbed on the NSs and subsequent energy transfer between them led to fluorescence quenching of the aptamer. The detection limit of PSA was achieved to be 13 pM for MoO3 NSs, whereas the MoS2 and MoSe2 systems exhibited a detection limit of 72 and 157 pM, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the ultra-sensitive detection of a 2D NS-based aptamer sensor. The in vitro bioimaging measurements were performed using confocal fluorescence microscopy. Herein, PSA detection was successfully demonstrated in human embryonic kidney 293T (HEK) live cells. Moreover, the MoO3, MoS2, and MoSe2 NSs exhibit excellent biocompatibility and low toxicity; thus, these 2D NSs can be used as a promising sensor platform to detect prostate cancer. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.
Dhenadhayalan, N, Sriram MI, Lin K-C.  2018.  Aptamer-based fluorogenic sensing of interferon-gamma probed with ReS2 and TiS2 nanosheets. Sensors and Actuators, B: Chemical. 258:929-936. AbstractWebsite

The fluorogenic aptamer sensing of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) was scrutinized using two-dimensional (2D) ReS2 and TiS2 nanosheets (NSs) as a platform. The IFN-γ an important cytokine, functions as a bio-indicator to detect infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus. This 2D NSs based aptamer sensor was implemented to induce the fluorescence off/on resulting from an aptamer, in the absence or presence of a target to be probed. The fluorescence emitting from the aptamer is quenched by interacting with NSs, while the ensuing fluorescence is recovered upon addition of target. Such a fluorescence off/on mechanism was proposed based on the behavior of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between the aptamer and NSs. The fluorescence response exhibits linearity as a function of target, and the detection limit of IFN-γ was evaluated to be 57.6 and 82.7 pM for ReS2 and TiS2 NSs, respectively, being comparable to or even better than those methods adopted for probing IFN-γ. The selectivity property was also characterized with various targets, exhibiting a very specific selectivity for IFN-γ. The findings reveal that the aptamer-transition metal dichalcogenides (TMD) NSs will be a great sensing pair to the development of aptamer-based biosensors. Moreover, the biocompatibility and sensing capability of IFN-γ was implemented in human embryonic kidney 293T (HEK) live cells. This is the first report to emerging fluorogenic sensing of IFN-γ aptamer with 2D TMD, showing a promising trend for future design of biosensors. © 2017 Elsevier B.V.