DNA/RNA chimera templated copper nanoclusters for label free detection of reverse transcription associated ribonuclease H
Abstract DNA templated fluorescent copper nanoclusters (DNA CuNCs) have demonstrated enormous potential for biochemical analysis. However, most of them are focused on DNA related sensing. Here, we designed a hairpin DNA/RNA chimeric chain for the formation of fluorescent CuNCs and further applied it to detect reverse transcription associated ribonuclease H (RNase H) The DNA/RNA chimera templated copper nanoclusters (DNA/RNA CuNCs) exhibited similar spectral properties with DNA CuNCs. In the presence of RNase H, the RNA segment in chimera is hydrolyzed and release short oligonucleotides, which fail to synthsize fluorescent CuNCs. The capabilities for RNase H detection from complex samples and screening of inhibitors were verified. This strategy exhibited high sensitivity for RNase H with a detectable minimum concentration of 5.5 x 10 4 U mL 1, which is lower than the developed fluorescent methods. This work will open up new thoughts to design new template for metal nanoclusters and broaden their application in RNA related sensing.