Chapter 12
Aptamers for the Diagnosis and Therapy
of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Jing Qu and Jianliang Zhang
Abstract Aptamers are small single-stranded DNA or RNA oligonucleotide fragments or small peptides, which can bind to targets by high affinity and specificity. Because aptamers are specific, non-immunogenic, and non-toxic, they
are ideal materials for clinical applications. Nowadays, neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Transmissible spongiform
encephalopathies, Huntington’s disease, are obsessing the lives of patients. These
diseases are mainly characterized by neuronal dysfunction and death, and most of
these diseases are associated with the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the
central nervous system. Although the pathologic mechanisms of neurodegenerative
diseases are still elusive, much progress has been made in recent years, especially
in the field of diagnosis and therapy of these diseases. With the advancements of the
technologies, aptamers, due to their advantages, have opened up new areas in the
research field of neurodegenerative diseases. In this chapter, we provide an overview
of aptamers’ applications in the diagnosis and therapy of these neurodegenerative
diseases.
Keywords Aptamers · Neurodegenerative diseases · Alzheimer’s disease ·
Parkinson’s disease · Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies · Huntington’s
disease
J. Qu
China-America Institute of Neuroscience, Department of Neurology, BejingLuhe Hospital,
Capital Medical University, Beijing 101149, China
J. Zhang (B)
Department of Neurobiology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Neural Regeneration and Repair, Beijing
Institute of Brain Disorders, Key Laboratory for Neurodegenerative Disease of the Ministry of
Education, Capital Medical University, #10 Xitoutiao, Youanmenwai, Beijing 100069, China
e-mail: jlzhang@ccmu.edu.cn
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
Y. Dong (ed.), Aptamers for Medical Applications,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4838-7_12
351
Aptamers for the Diagnosis and Therapy
of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Jing Qu and Jianliang Zhang
Abstract Aptamers are small single-stranded DNA or RNA oligonucleotide fragments or small peptides, which can bind to targets by high affinity and specificity. Because aptamers are specific, non-immunogenic, and non-toxic, they
are ideal materials for clinical applications. Nowadays, neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Transmissible spongiform
encephalopathies, Huntington’s disease, are obsessing the lives of patients. These
diseases are mainly characterized by neuronal dysfunction and death, and most of
these diseases are associated with the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the
central nervous system. Although the pathologic mechanisms of neurodegenerative
diseases are still elusive, much progress has been made in recent years, especially
in the field of diagnosis and therapy of these diseases. With the advancements of the
technologies, aptamers, due to their advantages, have opened up new areas in the
research field of neurodegenerative diseases. In this chapter, we provide an overview
of aptamers’ applications in the diagnosis and therapy of these neurodegenerative
diseases.
Keywords Aptamers · Neurodegenerative diseases · Alzheimer’s disease ·
Parkinson’s disease · Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies · Huntington’s
disease
J. Qu
China-America Institute of Neuroscience, Department of Neurology, BejingLuhe Hospital,
Capital Medical University, Beijing 101149, China
J. Zhang (B)
Department of Neurobiology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Neural Regeneration and Repair, Beijing
Institute of Brain Disorders, Key Laboratory for Neurodegenerative Disease of the Ministry of
Education, Capital Medical University, #10 Xitoutiao, Youanmenwai, Beijing 100069, China
e-mail: jlzhang@ccmu.edu.cn
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
Y. Dong (ed.), Aptamers for Medical Applications,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4838-7_12
351