Aptamers for omega-3 fatty acids

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Omega-3 fatty acids (Omega-3) are very important to human health, but more than 70% of Canadians are Omega-3 deficient. Currently, Omega-3 status of individuals is determined via blood test in private laboratories using a method that is old, tedious, and time consuming. Pivotal Therapeutics Inc has been interested in developing a rapid test that can be performed at the point of care (POC) or by individuals themselves to monitor their Omega-3 status. However, the major hindrance for developing such a test is lack of availability of any recognition probes that are specific for Omega-3. Through an awarded Engage grant, Pivotal has been collaborating with Dr. Yingfu Li at McMaster University to develop DNA aptamer based molecular probes for Omega-3, and together the team has made significant progress, and have isolated several aptamers that can differentially recognize various Omega fatty acids. Through this Engage Plus grant Pivotal and Dr. Li will keep