| miRNAs are a large family of non-coding RNAs which play important roles in translational and posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression and biological processes. Abnormal expression of miRNAs is
related to the initiation and progression of different diseases which make them be promising candidates for early
medical diagnostics. Thus, accurate detection of miRNAs has great signifcance for disorder diagnosis. Nevertheless, their intrinsic characteristics such as short sequence, low concentration and sequence homology challenge routine techniques. The detection assays need to be extremely sensitive and selective in small value of
intricate RNA samples. Biosensor-based strategies have emerged as potential alternatives to conventional
methods in miRNA quantifcation. The surface plasmon resonance (SPR), an optical biosensor, possessing various
advantages including excellent reliability, selectivity and reproducibility represents a wide range of applications
in real-time monitoring of biomolecular interactions and detection of biological and chemical analytes with
label-based or label free form. Various signal amplifcation methods can overcome the limitation of SPR methods
for detection of small molecules, making it suitable for clinical diagnosis. This review discusses main concepts
and performance characteristics of SPR biosensor. Mainly, it focuses on newly emerged enhanced SPR biosensors
towards high-throughput and ultrasensitive screening of miRNAs using labeling processes with focusing on the
future application in biomedical research and clinical diagnosis. Actually, label-based signal amplifcation
strategies of SPR platforms including nanoparticle enhancement, supersandwich assembly, streptavidin/biotin
complex, antibody amplifcation, enzymatic reactions, triplex structure formation and catalytic hairpin assembly
are discussed. Finally label free detection of miRNAs and advantages of SPR-based method was presented. |