INFORM · Innovative Electrochemical Multiplex Biosensor for Detection and Quantification of Clinically Relevant Circulating miRNAs
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2020-01-01 → 2021-12-31
- EU contribution
- €178,320
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF-EF-ST
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Innovative Electrochemical Multiplex Biosensor for Detection and Quantification of Clinically Relevant Circulating miRNAs
Analysis of peripheral blood as a source of, tumour-shed, cancer biomarkers has been fostered with the concept of liquid biopsy. Circulating aberrant amounts of non-coding microRNA have been shown to be clinically associated with cancer. Data from clinical studies and meta-analysis demonstrated that altered expression of microRNAs in plasma to be associated with prostate cancer (PCa) aggressiveness, distant metastasis, biochemical recurrence and prognosis. The high chemical stability of miRNAs in body fluids makes them powerful biomarkers present at levels suitable for testing in patient samples. In INFORM a sandwich assay is used to detect miRNAs that are clinically relevant in PCa. The capture strand is immobilized on a screen-printed gold electrode and the detection strand is labelled with a photosensitiser, which produces singlet oxygen, 1O2, upon excitation with light. The 1O2 produce is quantified using chronoamperometry and it is proportional to the concentration of miRNA in solution. Electrochemiluminescent and photoelectrochemical strategies have been developed t detect miR-141, miR-145 and miR-375 in human fluids with the highlight being the multiplex detection and quantification of the three miRNAs in patient samples.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Radical prostatectomy is currently the most used curative procedure in the treatment of localised prostate cancer (PCa). However, in 30-50% of interventioned patients Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) increases on post-operatory, meaning that the cancer has spread. The rise in PSA is due to imprecision in preoperative staging, suggesting patients already had distant, undetectable disease. Another issue is that elevated serum PSA is not specific to malignant prostate disease, it cannot differentiate between indolent tumours or those that are/will become life threatening. Fatal cancer is most often due to metastatic disease but histopathological examination of biopsy or traditional imaging methods fail to detect the early disseminated circulating biological information highlighting the need for approaches that can detect biomarkers of cancer spreading at an early stage. Circulating amounts of non-coding microRNA (miRNA) have been shown to have a biological impact and to be clinically associated with cancer and are now seen as a new class of biomarkers that will allow earlier and more accurate diagnosis.The objective of INFORM is to develop an innovative electrochemical multiplex biosensor for detection and quantification of a panel of clinically relevant circulating miRNAs in intermediate-risk PCa patients that will be submitted to potentially curative surgery. By focusing on the development, optimisation and validation of a biosensor for miRNA profiling in PCa, discrimination of patients with local disease from those with more advanced PCa will be possible. The biosensor will rely on the selectivity of the sandwich assays and on the sensitivity of the photoelectrochemical detection to quantify, at the sub-fM level, circulating miRNAs that are associated with PCa. The quantification of these overexpressed miRNAs will lead to a better overall management of the disease and allow for a more informed decision by the medical doctor, providing personalised medicine.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- UNIVERSITEIT ANTWERPEN · AntwerpenCoordinatorBelgium
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union