miRNA sensing hydrogels capable of self-signal amplification for early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD), one of the leading senile disorders in the world, causes severe memory loss and cognitive impairment. To date, there is no clear cure for AD. However, early diagnosis and monitoring can help mitigate the effects of this disease. In this study, we reported a platform for diagnosing early-stage AD using microRNAs (miRNAs) in the blood as biomarkers. First, we selected an appropriate target miRNA (miR-574-5p) using AD model mice (4-month-old 5XFAD mice) and developed a hydrogel-based sensor that enabled high-sensitivity detection of the target miRNA. This hydrogel contained catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) reaction-based probes, leading to fluorescence signal amplification without enzymes and temperature changes, at room temperature. This sensor exhibited high sensitivity and selectivity, as evidenced by its picomolar-level detection limit (limit of detection: 1.29 pM). Additionally, this sensor was evaluated using the plasma of AD patients and non-AD control to validate its clinical applicability. Finally, to use this sensor as a point-of-care-testing (POCT) diagnostic system, a portable fluorometer was developed and verified for feasibility of application.