Abstract
DNA aptamers are single-stranded DNA oligonucleotides that can selectively bind to target molecules. They can be used for the detection of various metabolites and proteins as disease biomarkers. Our lab recently discovered new aptamers that can bind to caffeine, uric acid and lactate, and converted them to highly sensitive and selective fluorescent biosensors. In addition, we have isolated aptamers that can bind to exosomes, which could be used for the isolation and detection of exosomes as important disease biomarkers. Finally, we have isolated aptamers that can bind to pig cornea and established an aptamer-enhanced ocular drug delivery method to treat dry eye diseases.
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Speaker: Professor Juewen Liu, PhD
Dr. Juewen Liu is a professor of chemistry at the University of Waterloo and a University Research Chair. He is interested in developing DNA and aptamer-based biosensors for detecting heavy metal ions, small molecules and proteins. He received a Fred Beamish Award (2014) and a McBryde Medal (2018) from the Canadian Society for Chemistry for his contribution in bioanalytical chemistry. He is a College member of the Royal Society of Canada. He serves as a Section Editor for Biosensors & Bioelectronics, a Contributing Editor for TrAC, and is on the editorial advisory board of Langmuir. He has published over 300 papers, receiving over 37,000 citations with an H-index of 92. He is in the list of 2022 Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers.