Enzyme-free amplified detection of microRNA using target-catalyzed hairpin assembly and magnesium ion-dependent deoxyribozyme

As microRNAs (miRNAs) are aberrantly expressed in a variety of cancers, detecting them precisely is of great importance. Here we constructed a sensitive and selective enzyme-free sensing platform for miRNA detection based on target-catalyzed hairpin assembly and magnesium ion-dependent deoxyribozyme (Mg2+-dependent DNAzyme). This sensing method introduces two amplification circuits simultaneously and shows a low detection limit of 1 pmol/L. This enzyme-free method is especially preferred because of its facility and economy. Furthermore, this amplified sensor shows high selectivity for discriminating perfectly complementary target and other mismatched RNAs. Therefore, the established strategy could be used as a simple, sensitive and selective method for target miRNA detection.