Aptamer-based enantioselective biosensors: a review of strategies for chiral biomolecule detection

Chirality in chemistry refers to the inherent ability of molecules to have two distinct forms or enantiomers that are irreplaceable mirror images of each other. In the building blocks of life, such as proteins and sugars, one enantiomer typically predominates, highlighting the importance of chirality. However, traditional analytical techniques, such as optical rotation scattering, often suffer from low sensitivity. Also, many chiral biomolecules only show detectable responses in the UV range, resulting in weak signal generation. Synthetic biology plays a crucial role in advancing the detection of chiral compounds, particularly through the innovative use of aptamers. Given that many biological and medicinal molecules exist in chiral forms, the integration of aptamers into biosensors (aptasensors) significantly enhances the efficiency of identifying and analyzing these compounds. This review discusses the innovative design strategies and advanced technologies of aptasensors for detecting enantiomers and facilitating chiral separation. Finally, we will address the technical challenges of each approach, propose effective solutions, and offer future outlooks for the application of aptamer-based platforms in the simultaneous and real-time detection of chiral mixtures.