Integrating aptamers into micro- and nanobiosystems for diagnostics

Aptamers are short, single stranded DNA/RNA oligonucleotides with the ability to fold into well-defined three-dimensional structures, which are fundamental for their highly selective target recognition, rivaling thus antibodies in terms of affinity and specificity. Thanks to these properties, they have been integrated into different micro- and nanoscale transducers, resulting in a new type of biosensors, known as `aptasensors', used in a truly new generation of diagnostic tools. Here, an overview will be given of different aptamer selection approaches, with the focus on lab-on-a-chip technology based methods, different concepts reported for integrating aptamers into micro- and nanobiosystems aiming at the development of sensitive diagnostics concluding with an outlook on the future of aptamers in theranostics.