Latest method for ultrafast and ultrasensitive quantitative measurement of biological nanoparticles

Can particles as minuscule as viruses be detected accurately inside a mere 5 minutes? Osaka Metropolitan University scientists say yes, with their modern method for ultrafast and ultrasensitive quantitative measurement of biological nanoparticles, opening doors for early diagnosis of a broad range of diseases.

Nanoscale extracellular vesicles (EVs) including exosomes, with diameters of fifty–150 nm, play essential roles in intercellular communication and have garnered attention as biomarkers for various diseases and drug delivery capsules. Consequently, the rapid and sensitive detection of nanoscale EVs from trace samples is of significant importance for early diagnosis of intractable diseases similar to cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Nonetheless, the extraction of nanoscale EVs from cell culture media previously required a posh and time-consuming process involving ultracentrifugation.

A research team led by Director Professor Takuya Iida, Deputy Director Associate Professor Shiho Tokonami, and Assistant Director Professor Ikuhiko Nakase, from the Research Institute for Light-induced Acceleration System (RILACS) at Osaka Metropolitan University, has utilized the ability of laser light to speed up the response between nanoscale EVs derived from cancer cells and antibody-modified microparticles. The three-dimensional structure of the resulting aggregates was then analyzed using confocal microscopy. Consequently, the researchers demonstrated the power to measure, inside 5 minutes, roughly 10³–10⁴ nanoscale EVs contained in a 500 nL sample.

This research achievement provides a technique for ultrafast and ultrasensitive quantitative measurement of biological nanoparticles, offering a foundation for modern evaluation of cell-to-cell communication and early diagnosis of assorted diseases in the long run.”

Professor Takuya Iida

Their findings were published in Nanoscale Horizons.