Selection of DNA aptamers targeting PirAB toxin for potential biosensing applications in acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND)
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: The timely detection of AHPND is one of the key factors to avoid the great economic losses that this disease entails for aquaculture. The use of aptamers as detection tools allows us to develop a method focused on the specific needs of the producer, such as being simple and easy to use, and capable of enabling safe, rapid field detection. Specific strains of Vibrio parahaemolyticus are the most well-known as the main causal agent of AHPND in shrimp cultures; however, it is not limited to this species, as a transfer of virulence factors has been observed, including the genes encoding the PirAB binary toxin. The concern that this transfer implies has led us to focus our interest on the PirAB binary toxin as a ligand for the development of aptamers capable of identifying it in the field in early stages and avoiding advanced stages of the disease, giving the producer the ability to take preventive actions and reduce the risk of losses. In the present work we have optimized the SELEX (systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment) aptamer development methodology to rapidly develop candidates capable of detecting both the PirAB complex and its subunits separately, obtaining candidates with a dissociation constant (K D ) of 65 to 700 nM for the PirB subunit and 1 to 3 μM for the PirAB complex. These aptamers provide the first step toward developing a rapid detection method targeting the causative toxin of AHPND and aid in a new, user-friendly approach to early disease detection. Highlights DNA aptamers were selected against the PirAB toxin of AHPND. An accelerated SELEX workflow enabled 17 selection cycles in two weeks. Selected aptamers showed preferential binding to PirB (K D 65-700 nM). Aptamers targeting PirAB and its subunits were characterized by MST. Selected aptamers provide candidates for future PirAB biosensing platforms.
Language: English
Subfield: Molecular Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7222742922