Recent advances in biological detection with rolling circle amplification: design strategy, biosensing mechanism, and practical applications

Rolling circle amplification (RCA) is a simple and isothermal DNA amplification technique that is used to generate thousands of repeating DNA sequences using circular templates under the catalysis of DNA polymerase. Compared to alternating temperature nucleic acid amplification such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification, RCA is more suitable for on-spot detection without the need for an expensive thermal cycler. In this study, the principle and classification of RCA are introduced, and the applications of RCA in the detection of pathogenic bacteria, nucleic acid tumor markers, viruses, and proteins are reviewed. Finally, the perspectives of RCA in biological detection are anticipated. The RCA method has a great potential for biological detection. This review aims to provide references for the further development and application of the RCA technique in biosensors.