Upconversion-mediated CRISPR-Cas12a biosensing for sensitive detection of ochratoxin A

Talanta. 2022 May 15:242:123232. doi: 10.1016/j.talanta.2022.123232. Epub 2022 Jan 21.

Abstract

The CRISPR-Cas system has achieved breakthrough applications in the field of molecular diagnostics. CRISPR/Cas12a can accurately identify subtle changes in a target nucleic acid sequence and has a wide range of applications such as in highly sensitive detection methods. In this study, an upconversion-magnetic probe-DNA-Fe3O4 probe was designed to replace traditional fluorescent probes using nucleic acid aptamers to design a biosensing method powered by CRISPR/Cas12a. The CRISPR/Cas12a technology can be widely used for sensitive, rapid, and stable detection of ochratoxin A. In our sensing strategy, the ochratoxin A capture probe was used to capture ochratoxin A and release the Cas protein activation chain, further triggering the single-stranded DNA degradation activity of CRISPR/Cas12a and removal of the fluorescent probe to generate a fluorescent signal. Compared with traditional commercial kits, our method was more rapid and exhibited comparable detection capability.

Keywords: Aptamer; CRISPR/Cas12a; Ochratoxin A; Sensor.

MeSH terms

  • Biosensing Techniques* / methods
  • CRISPR-Cas Systems
  • DNA, Single-Stranded
  • Ochratoxins*

Substances

  • DNA, Single-Stranded
  • Ochratoxins
  • ochratoxin A