11 Hormone Aptamers in Endocrine-Related Diseases
333
Zhang and Gopinath [56] established an electrochemical interdigitated electrode
sensor with an aptamer15-1-conjugated gold nanorod to quantify cortisol levels in
the human serum. The detection limit was 0.01 ng/mL, and the linearity ranged
from 0.01 to 0.1 ng/mL. Furthermore, this system verified the specificity of cortisol
aptamer, which was able to discriminate cortisol from closely related hormones such
as norepinephrine and progesterone. This detection is beneficial for the diagnosis of
related clinical diseases in stressful situations.
Bao et al. [57] also developed colorimetric assay methods using aptamer and
gold nanorod conjugate as the primary tools to monitor the alteration of cortisol
to identify gestational hypertension. In the experimental system, cortisol induced
an obvious color change from red to purple of the gold nanorod solution in which
monovalent salt exists, with a detection limit of 0.25 mg/mL.
In 2017, Fernandez [58] reported a disposable point-of-care aptasensor to detect
the salivary cortisol. The aptasensor was constructed by aptamer15-1 functionalized
magnetic nanoparticles and macrocyclic catalyst ink fabricated printed electrodes.
This electrochemical methodology could capture salivary cortisol by aptamer functionalized magnetic nanoparticles. The preclinical studied was carried out on five
human subjects with high and low obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and found variations
of cortisol level in their saliva samples.
Cheng’s group [59] found steroid hormones, including cortisol, could quench
the fluorescence of QDs. Upon this observation, they develop a QD-based cortisol
aptasensor that could determine the cortisol concentration by measuring the
direct quenching of fluorescence intensity without additional labeling. The simple
aptasensor offered an excellent quenching efficiency and enabled rapidly a detectable
limit of 1 nM. The linear detection range is from 0.4 to 400 nM. The detection time
was further shortened to 20 min because of label-free detection. This aptasensor was
verified to be a simple and sensitive tool to monitor the concentration of cortisol even
in saliva samples.
11.3 Aptamer Application in Endocrine-Related Disease
Aptamer has the characteristics of high selectivity, high sensitivity, easy screening,
and facile production. Considering these properties, the researchers believe that
aptamers have great potential in endocrine-related diseases, as evidenced by the
successful applications in medical diagnosis, real-time detection, and disease
treatment.
11.3.1 Application of Aptamer in Medical Diagnosis
Aptamer targets are inherently distributed almost everywhere in the human body.
With the development of functional polymers and nano-materials, virtually all the
333
Zhang and Gopinath [56] established an electrochemical interdigitated electrode
sensor with an aptamer15-1-conjugated gold nanorod to quantify cortisol levels in
the human serum. The detection limit was 0.01 ng/mL, and the linearity ranged
from 0.01 to 0.1 ng/mL. Furthermore, this system verified the specificity of cortisol
aptamer, which was able to discriminate cortisol from closely related hormones such
as norepinephrine and progesterone. This detection is beneficial for the diagnosis of
related clinical diseases in stressful situations.
Bao et al. [57] also developed colorimetric assay methods using aptamer and
gold nanorod conjugate as the primary tools to monitor the alteration of cortisol
to identify gestational hypertension. In the experimental system, cortisol induced
an obvious color change from red to purple of the gold nanorod solution in which
monovalent salt exists, with a detection limit of 0.25 mg/mL.
In 2017, Fernandez [58] reported a disposable point-of-care aptasensor to detect
the salivary cortisol. The aptasensor was constructed by aptamer15-1 functionalized
magnetic nanoparticles and macrocyclic catalyst ink fabricated printed electrodes.
This electrochemical methodology could capture salivary cortisol by aptamer functionalized magnetic nanoparticles. The preclinical studied was carried out on five
human subjects with high and low obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and found variations
of cortisol level in their saliva samples.
Cheng’s group [59] found steroid hormones, including cortisol, could quench
the fluorescence of QDs. Upon this observation, they develop a QD-based cortisol
aptasensor that could determine the cortisol concentration by measuring the
direct quenching of fluorescence intensity without additional labeling. The simple
aptasensor offered an excellent quenching efficiency and enabled rapidly a detectable
limit of 1 nM. The linear detection range is from 0.4 to 400 nM. The detection time
was further shortened to 20 min because of label-free detection. This aptasensor was
verified to be a simple and sensitive tool to monitor the concentration of cortisol even
in saliva samples.
11.3 Aptamer Application in Endocrine-Related Disease
Aptamer has the characteristics of high selectivity, high sensitivity, easy screening,
and facile production. Considering these properties, the researchers believe that
aptamers have great potential in endocrine-related diseases, as evidenced by the
successful applications in medical diagnosis, real-time detection, and disease
treatment.
11.3.1 Application of Aptamer in Medical Diagnosis
Aptamer targets are inherently distributed almost everywhere in the human body.
With the development of functional polymers and nano-materials, virtually all the