An Ochratoxin a DNA Aptamer-Mediated Transcriptional Regulatory Riboswitch Biosensor

This study developed a transcriptional regulation riboswitch biosensing analytical method based on the Ochratoxin A (OTA) DNA aptamer programming design. OTA DNA aptamer was used to develop artificial riboswitch, a strategy that relies on a simple combination of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) template with oligonucleotides that base pair only in the −17 to +1 region to define promoter elements. The OTA DNA aptamer sequence GATCGGGTTGGGTGGCGTAAAGGGAGCATCGG (1.12.8) has a typical antiparallel G-quadruplex structure, and the presence of OTA will further stabilize this structure. Based on this property, OTA DNA aptamer can be used to construct riboswitch and potentially transcriptionally regulate gene expression. To further increase the impact of OTA-binding aptamer on the structure, an ssDNA template was prepared based on the rolling circle replication mechanism of the helper phage M13K07. This ssDNA was used in the cell-free expression system to inhibit the expression of the downstream reporter gene colorimetric enzyme catechol (2,3)-dioxygenase (C23DO) in the presence of OTA. C23DO was used to catalyze the substrate catechol to produce a colorimetric output. This study broadens the potential of artificial riboswitch as practical biosensing module tools and contributes to the development of simple, rapid, field-deployable analytical methods with broad application prospects for field placement testing.