RNA Nanoparticles-Based Biosensors for Diagnostics and Drug Delivery

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue focuses on the latest developments and applications of RNA nanoparticle-based biosensors in diagnostics and drug delivery. A biosensor is a biological device capable of transforming physical or chemical effects, resulting from the interaction between analytes of interest and biological objects, into measurable signals. Today, many nanomaterials are well developed for the fabrication of biosensors. RNA is a polymeric biomaterial that can serve as a new generation of building blocks to construct nanostructures/nanoparticles. Recent advances in RNA chemistry and RNA biology have demonstrated a range of unique properties of RNA that are advantageous for applications in biomedical and materials sciences. For instance, RNA-based nanomaterials can be chemically modified to be stable and resistant to enzymatic degradation. The discovery of ultra-thermostable RNA motifs can be applied to facilitate the bottom-up self-assembly of RNA nanostructures. The incorporation of special modules, such as aptamer, ribozymes, siRNA, imaging probes, targeting ligands, or small-molecule drugs, on the nanoparticles can retain their authentic folding and biological activity, making them functional for biomedical applications. Recent decades have witnessed the rapid growth of RNA nanotechnology, as evidenced by a variety of multifunctional RNA nanoparticles, including polygons, arrays, dendrimers, micelles, cages, bundles, fibers, membranes, microsponges, and logic gates. These RNA nanoparticles are rationally designed to form a specific size, shape, and well-defined structure, via either intra- or inter-molecular interactions. Due to their favorable properties, such as biocompatibility, specificity, programmability, and predictability, RNA nanoparticles can be integrated as part of a biosensor or, theoretically, even as a whole biosensor.

This Special Issue of Biosensors, entitled “RNA Nanoparticle-Based Biosensors for Diagnosis and Drug Delivery,” aims to serve as a platform to publish the latest advancements of using RNA nanoparticles as biosensors, with a focus on applications in diagnostics and drug delivery. We invite all researchers in this field to contribute their original research articles, short communications, and reviews.

Dr. Sijin Guo
Dr. Emil F. Khisamutdinov
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biosensors is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• RNA biosensor
• RNA-based biosensor
• RNA nanoparticles
• RNA nanostructures
• RNA origami
• RNA nanotechnology
• diagnostics
• drug delivery
• biomarker detection