Viral aptamer screening and aptamer-based biosensors for virus detection: A review

Virus-induced infectious diseases have a detrimental effect on public health and exert significant influence on the global economy. Therefore, the rapid and accurate detection of viruses is crucial for effectively preventing and diagnosing infections. Aptamer-based detection technologies have attracted researchers' attention as promising solutions. Aptamers, small single-stranded DNA or RNA screened via systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX), possess a high affinity towards their target molecules. Numerous aptamers targeting viral marker proteins or virions have been developed and widely employed in aptamer-based biosensors (aptasensor) for virus detection. This review introduces SELEX schemes for screening aptamers and discusses distinctive SELEX strategies designed explicitly for viral targets. Furthermore, recent advances in aptamer-based biosensing methods for detecting common viruses using different virus-specific aptamers are summarized. Finally, limitations and prospects associated with developing of aptamer-based biosensors are discussed.