Issue 35, 2021

RNA BioMolecular Electronics: towards new tools for biophysics and biomedicine

Abstract

The last half-century has witnessed the birth and development of a new multidisciplinary field at the edge between materials science, nanoscience, engineering, and chemistry known as Molecular Electronics. This field deals with the electronic properties of individual molecules and their integration as active components in electronic circuits and has also been applied to biomolecules, leading to BioMolecular Electronics and opening new perspectives for single-molecule biophysics and biomedicine. Herein, we provide a brief introduction and overview of the BioMolecular electronics field, focusing on nucleic acids and potential applications for these measurements. In particular, we review the recent demonstration of the first single-molecule electrical detection of a biologically-relevant nucleic acid. We also show how this could be used to study biomolecular interactions and applications in liquid biopsy for early cancer detection, among others. Finally, we discuss future perspectives and challenges in the applications of this fascinating research field.

Graphical abstract: RNA BioMolecular Electronics: towards new tools for biophysics and biomedicine

Article information

Article type
Perspective
Submitted
20 May 2021
Accepted
11 Aug 2021
First published
08 Sep 2021
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY-NC license

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2021,9, 6994-7006

RNA BioMolecular Electronics: towards new tools for biophysics and biomedicine

K. G. G. Pattiya Arachchillage, S. Chandra, A. Piso, T. Qattan and J. M. Artes Vivancos, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2021, 9, 6994 DOI: 10.1039/D1TB01141C

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