Nucleic Acid Aptamers as Emerging Tools for Diagnostics and Theranostics

: Aptamers are ssDNA or RNA sequences (20-80 nucleotides) generated in vitro by SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands using EXponential enrichment) against diverse range of targets from small molecules to bacteria, viruses, and even eukaryotic cells. Aptamers, also known as chemical bodies, bind to their respective targets with tunable affinity and specificity, making aptamers as potent probes for diagnostics and excellent ligands for drug delivery in therapeutics. In this chapter, we have described the methods for generating DNA aptamers against proteins and their use in theranostics.