OPTICAL SENSORS BASED ON HYBRID APTAMER/CONJUGATED POLYMER COMPLEXES

摘要

An optical sensor for detecting a target comprising a singlestranded aptamercomplementary to said target, and a water-soluble cationic polythiophenederivative of the following formula (I) wherein "n" is an integer ranging from6 to 100, is disclosed. The optical sensor allows for the detection of targetsselected from the group consisting of potassium ions, small organic molecules,amino acids, proteins, whole cells and nucleotides. The detection is based onthe formation of hybrid anionic aptamer/cationic polythiophene complexes.