Self-feeding multistage catalytic hairpin assembly programming supramolecular DNA nanoarchitecture for spatiotemporal molecular imaging of microRNA in living cells

• Published in: Sensors and actuators. B, Chemical Chemical, 2025-02, Vol.424, p.136919, Article 136919
• Main Authors: Wei, Xujin, Wang, Yuping, Shen, Jiaxin, Chi, Xintong, Xu, Jianguo, Jia, Lee, Xu, Huo, Liu, Wenming
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Catalytic hairpin assembly; MicroRNA imaging; Self-feeding mechanism; Spatiotemporal molecular imaging; Supramolecular DNA nanoarchitecture
• ISSN: 0925-4005
• DOI: 10.1016/j.snb.2024.136919

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNA molecules that play important roles in gene regulation and have been linked to various biological processes and diseases, including cancer. The ability to visualize miRNAs in living cells is crucial for understanding their functions and their associations with cancer. In this study, we developed a self-feeding multistage catalytic hairpin assembly (SFM-CHA) strategy for spatiotemporal molecular imaging of miRNAs in living cells. The SFM-CHA approach overcomes the limitations of typical catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) by incorporating a self-feeding mechanism to program a supramolecular DNA nanoarchitecture. The self-feeding mechanism enables repeated opening of hairpin probes, leading to enhanced fluorescence signal amplification for sensitized imaging of miRNA in living cells. The resulting supramolecular DNA nanoarchitecture provides a greatly enhanced biostability within the complex intracellular environment, addressing the issue of degradation by nucleic acid-degrading enzymes. Experimental results demonstrated that SFM-CHA enables dynamic and accurate analysis of intracellular miRNA expression levels with minimal interference and toxicity. The SFM-CHA approach holds significant potential for early cancer diagnosis and other biological applications. •SFM-CHA enhances miRNA imaging by overcoming traditional CHA limits with a self-feeding mechanism.•Programmed supramolecular DNA enhances biostability, addressing degradation in cells.•SFM-CHA allows precise intracellular miRNA analysis, aiding early cancer detection with minimal interference.•SFM-CHA, non-toxic, is ideal for cancer diagnostics and personalized medicine.