A team of South Korean researchers has developed an ultrafast diagnostic platform that can analyze molecular signals associated with vascular diseases from just a drop of plasma in about 10 minutes.
Seoul Asan Medical Center said Aug. 18 that a joint research team led by Lee Jun-yup, a professor of ophthalmology at the hospital, and Hong Sun-ki, a professor of chemical physics at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), developed a platform called SAFE that can directly detect microRNAs in about 10 minutes without separately isolating extracellular vesicles or going through a series of microRNA extraction procedures.
Extracellular vesicles are small particles measuring tens to hundreds of nanometers that are secreted by cells. They contain disease-related proteins, nucleic acids and microRNAs (miRNAs), and have recently emerged as key biomarkers for next-generation liquid biopsies.
MicroRNAs are small RNA fragments that regulate gene expression. Their types and levels vary depending on the disease, making them useful as diagnostic indicators. Liposomes are tiny vesicles made of lipids similar to cell membranes, while molecular beacons are probes that emit fluorescent signals when they bind to specific genetic material.
Existing methods require complex procedures to isolate extracellular vesicles and extract RNA, resulting in lengthy analysis times and the need for specialized equipment.
To address these limitations, the research team developed a technology that uses ultrasound to rapidly fuse liposomes with extracellular vesicles. The process delivers molecular beacons into extracellular vesicles, allowing the platform to directly detect microRNAs without a separate RNA extraction process and complete the analysis in about 10 minutes.
The researchers further evaluated the platform’s potential for clinical application by analyzing plasma samples from 20 patients with cardiovascular disease and 15 healthy individuals.
The SAFE platform successfully detected miR-133a and miR-208a, two representative microRNAs associated with myocardial injury, with diagnostic accuracy of about 91.4% for each.
The technology could potentially be used to rapidly screen for vascular diseases in medical settings such as emergency rooms, where quick clinical decisions are required.
The platform could also potentially be expanded beyond cardiovascular diseases to extracellular vesicle-based molecular diagnostics for various conditions, including cancer, neurodegenerative diseases and ophthalmic disorders.
Professor Lee said, “This study led to the development of a technology that can perform complex extracellular vesicle analysis in just 10 minutes,” adding that he expects the SAFE platform to eventually help clinicians rapidly and accurately diagnose diseases and make treatment decisions in real-world medical settings.
Professor Hong said, “SAFE is a simple molecular diagnostic technology that can directly analyze microRNAs in plasma without isolating extracellular vesicles or extracting RNA,” adding that the team plans to expand clinical validation across various diseases and develop the platform into a next-generation diagnostic technology for use in healthcare settings.
The study was supported by the Ministry of Science and ICT’s National Research Foundation of Korea Leading Research Center program, the Individual Basic Research Program, DGIST’s research and development program, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Korea Health Industry Development Institute health technology research and development program and global physician-scientist development program.
The findings were published in the latest issue of Small, a leading journal in nanoscience and biomaterials with an impact factor of 11.8, and were selected as a cover paper in recognition of the study’s scientific significance.