Nucleic Acid Aptamers : Research Tools in Disease Diagnostics and Therapeutics

Aptamers are short sequences of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) or peptide molecules which adopt a conformation and bind cognate ligands with high affinity and specificity in a manner akin to antibody-antigen interactions. It has been globally acknowledged that aptamers promise a plethora of diagnostic an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BioMed research international 2014-01, Vol.2014 (2014), p.1-13
Main Authors: Santosh, Baby, Yadava, Pramod K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Aptamers, Nucleotide - therapeutic use
Biomedical Research
Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures
Disease
Evolution
Forecasts and trends
Gene expression
Health aspects
Humans
Ligands
Mutation
Nucleic acid aptamers
Proteins
Review
RNA polymerase
SELEX Aptamer Technique
Spinach
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Summary:Aptamers are short sequences of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) or peptide molecules which adopt a conformation and bind cognate ligands with high affinity and specificity in a manner akin to antibody-antigen interactions. It has been globally acknowledged that aptamers promise a plethora of diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Although use of nucleic acid aptamers as targeted therapeutics or mediators of targeted drug delivery is a relatively new avenue of research, one aptamer-based drug “Macugen” is FDA approved and a series of aptamer-based drugs are in clinical pipelines. The present review discusses the aspects of design, unique properties, applications, and development of different aptamers to aid in cancer diagnosis, prevention, and/or treatment under defined conditions.
ISSN:2314-6133
2314-6141
DOI:10.1155/2014/540451