In this study, we
report a gold nanoparticle (AuNP)-amplified surface
acoustic wave (SAW) sensor for exosome detection with high sensitivity.
The SAW chip was self-assembled with mercapto acetic acid to generate
carboxylic groups via the Au–S bond. Anti-CD63 was then anchored
onto the chip by pretreatment with 1-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-3-ethylcarbodiimide
hydrochloride (EDC) and N-hydroxysuccinimide,1-hydroxypyrrolidine-2,5-dione
(NHS). Due to the existence of a membrane protein, CD63, on the exosome
surface, exosomes could be bound onto the antibody-immobilized SAW
chip. To amplify the detection signal, both the biotin-conjugated
epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) antibody as a secondary
antibody and AuNP-labeled streptavidin were applied onto the exosome-bound
SAW chip, resulting in AuNP assembly on the chip through biotin–avidin
recognition. The sensor was capable of detecting 1.1 × 103 particles/mL exosomes, which was about 2 orders of magnitude
higher than those detected by the strategy without using signal amplification.
The sensor also achieved a satisfactory specificity and could detect
the low-abundance exosomes directly in blood samples from cancer patients
with minimal disturbance. This makes the SAW sensor useful for early
diagnosis of cancer.
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