Publication Date
2023
Journal or Book Title
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Abstract
Electronic detection of DNA oligomers offers the promise of rapid, miniaturized DNA analysis across various biotechnological applications. However, known all-electrical methods, which solely rely on measuring electrical signals in transducers during probe–target DNA hybridization, are prone to nonspecific electrostatic and electrochemical interactions, subsequently limiting their specificity and detection limit. Here, we demonstrate a nanomechanoelectrical approach that delivers ultra-robust specificity and a 100-fold improvement in detection limit. We drive nanostructural DNA strands tethered to a graphene transistor to oscillate in an alternating electric field and show that the transistor-current spectra are characteristic and indicative of DNA hybridization. We find that the inherent difference in pliability between unpaired and paired DNA strands leads to the spectral characteristics with minimal influence from nonspecific electrostatic and electrochemical interactions, resulting in high selectivity and sensitivity. Our results highlight the potential of high-performance DNA analysis based on miniaturized all-electronic settings.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2306130120
Volume
120
Issue
33
License
UMass Amherst Open Access Policy
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Xiaoyu; Fan, Xiao; Bao, Huilu; and Ping, Jinglei, "Nanomechanoelectrical approach to highly sensitive and specific label-free DNA detection" (2023). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 648.
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2306130120