On-Cell Catalytic Detection of Epithelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition by a Clusterzyme Bioprobe

Anal Chem. 2022 Feb 22;94(7):3023-3028. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.1c05556. Epub 2022 Feb 8.

Abstract

We construct a peptide-conjugated metal cluster as an enzyme-like catalytic bioprobe to enhance quantitative analysis of a membrane protein biomarker and detect epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of tumor cells. This bioprobe with atomically precise formula, termed clusterzyme, possesses selective recognition and intrinsic enzyme-like activity. These favorable features facilitate sensitive quantitative analysis of the membrane protein in situ through on-cell catalytic signal amplification. This clusterzyme-based analytical method exhibits excellent compatibility with a traditional enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and improved detection sensitivity with accuracy and robustness. Further, the expression level of the membrane protein reflects the ability of migration and invasion of model tumor cells, revealing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition process. This work offers a facile and sensitive approach to monitor tumor cell type evolution at the molecular level, demonstrating a potential application of early cancer diagnosis and therapy assessment.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biosensing Techniques*
  • Catalysis
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Movement
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition
  • Humans
  • Neoplasms*