High Sensitivity Phenotyping of Extracellular Vesicles by Customized, Single-Molecule Assays
Extracellular Vesicles (EV) and exosomes - a subtype of EV - are tiny biogenic particles released by many types of cells in various bodily fluids such as blood, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid. As EVs contain and expose a variety of molecules, including proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids, they can serve as potential biomarkers for various diseases including cancer, neurological disorders, and infectious diseases.
Although EV have the potential to be an excellent source of biomarkers in liquid biopsy, they face challenges in becoming a prominent choice due to their small size, low refractive index, inherent heterogeneity, and high sensitivity requirements to detect disease-specific sub-populations with low abundance. To meet these needs, innovative affinity-probes and digital detection techniques capable of achieving single-molecule sensitivity are required. In our recent work, we set customized assays for EV detection by Single Molecule Array technology (SiMoA) and compared the performance with Single Particle Interferometric Reflectance Imaging Sensing (SP-IRIS) and Super Resolution Microscopy. We will also discuss the potential to customize SiMoA beads with probes other than antibodies, providing examples of how this can be applied to EV phenotyping in various biological media.
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