RNA detection permits early diagnosis of several infectious diseases and cancers, which prevent propagation of diseases and improve treatment efficacy. However, standard technique for RNA detection such as reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction has complicated procedure and requires well-trained personnel and specialized lab equipment. These shortcomings limit the application for point-of-care analysis which is critical for rapid and effective disease management. The multicomponent nucleic acid enzymes (MNAzymes) are one of the promising biosensors for simple, isothermal and enzyme-free RNA detection. Herein, we demonstrate simple yet effective strategies that significantly enhance analytical performance of MNAzymes. The addition of the cationic copolymer and structural modification of MNAzyme significantly enhanced selectivity and activity of MNAzymes by 250 fold and 2,700 fold, respectively. The highly simplified RNA detection system achieved a detection limit of 73 fM target concentration without additional amplification. The robustness of MNAzyme in the presence of non-target RNA was also improved. Our finding opens up a route toward the development of an alternative rapid, sensitive, isothermal, and protein-free RNA diagnostic tool, which expected to be of great clinical significance.

RNA检测可以早期诊断几种传染病和癌症，从而防止疾病传播并提高治疗效果。然而，用于RNA检测的标准技术例如逆转录定量聚合酶链反应具有复杂的程序，并且需要训练有素的人员和专门的实验室设备。这些缺点限制了即时分析的应用，这对于快速有效的疾病管理至关重要。多组分核酸酶（MNAzymes）是用于简单，等温和无酶RNA检测的有前途的生物传感器之一。在这里，我们演示了简单而有效的策略，可以显着增强MNAzymes的分析性能。阳离子共聚物的添加和MNAzyme的结构修饰分别将MNAzyme的选择性和活性分别提高了250倍和2700倍。高度简化的RNA检测系统无需额外扩增即可达到73 fM目标浓度的检测限。MNAzyme在非目标RNA存在下的鲁棒性也得到了改善。我们的发现为开发另一种快速，灵敏，等温且不含蛋白质的RNA诊断工具开辟了道路，该工具有望具有重要的临床意义。MNAzyme在非目标RNA存在下的鲁棒性也得到了改善。我们的发现为开发另一种快速，灵敏，等温且不含蛋白质的RNA诊断工具开辟了道路，该工具有望具有重要的临床意义。MNAzyme在非目标RNA存在下的鲁棒性也得到了改善。我们的发现为开发另一种快速，灵敏，等温且不含蛋白质的RNA诊断工具开辟了道路，该工具有望具有重要的临床意义。