Bespoke RNA Nanoprobes for Early Cancer Detection Using Liquid Biopsy

Nanoprobe technology for detection and analysis of RNA at single-cell level in liquid biopsy for cancer diagnosis and precision medicine

The technology

We've created bespoke nanoprobe technology designed for the detection and analysis of ribonucleic acid (RNA) at the single-cell level, with application in the early detection, prognosis, efficacy assessment, and prediction of aggressive primary cancers.

Our liquid biopsy technology is a disruptive diagnostic that bridges a critical gap in technologies for the detection of molecular markers with minimal liquid biological samples. Our technology relies on bespoke RNA nanoprobes based on a novel type of nanoprobe to detect RNA biomarkers at the single-cell level through fluorescence detection systems such as flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. This allows analysis of the expression level of RNA biomarkers at the single-cell level.

We plan to construct novel prototype fluorescence instrumentation to enable high throughput rapid quantitative RNA analysis at the single-cell level in conjunction with our RNA nanoprobes.

Our nanoprobes have been shown to identify cancer molecular biomarkers in circulating tumour cells in the blood

Combining our nanoprobe assay with quantitative analysis, our technology provides the opportunity for a game-changing in vitro liquid biopsy diagnostic.

Background

Despite the existence of screening and biopsies, there is a lack of sensitive and affordable tools for early diagnosis and prognosis of aggressive primary cancers. This is the most important obstacle in reducing mortality and enhancing patient quality of life.

Liquid biopsy offers a promising solution that facilitates non-invasive, facile measurement for cancer diagnosis, monitoring prognosis, and validating the efficacy of treatment over time. However, liquid biopsy is technically challenging because of the diminutive amount of circulating cancer cells in a high background of healthy cells, demanding a highly selective and sensitive analysis mechanism.

Our team has successfully demonstrated a rapid and highly selective diagnostic tool for aggressive primary cancers. The main cause of death from cancer in Europe is due to the lack of effective tools for early detection and monitoring of recurrence.

Benefits

There are unprecedented opportunities for the rapid detecting of RNA in only small subsets of cells among large populations in liquid biopsy. This technology can also provide an affordable diagnostic technique for improved clinical decision-making with global market potential.