NANOPLASMONIC QUANTIFICATION OF TUMOR-DERIVED EXTRACELLULAR VESICLES IN PLASMA MICROSAMPLES FOR DETECTION AND TREATMENT MONITORING

摘要

A rapid, ultrasensitive and inexpensive nanoplasmon-enhanced scattering (nPES) assay that directly quantifies tumor-derived EVs from as little as 1 μ{umlaut over ({acute over (ι)})}, of plasma is described herein. This assay uses binding of gold nanospheres and nanorods with EV- and tumor-derived EV-specificities to produce a local plasmon effect that enhances tumor-derived EV detection sensitivity and specificity. This nPES approach is also a non-invasive method for assessing pancreatic cancer stage and treatment response that can be easily refined for clinical use, and is readily adapted for diagnosis and monitoring of other conditions with disease-specific EV proteins.