Preferential capture of EpCAM-expressing extracellular vesicles on solid surfaces coated with an aptamer-conjugated zwitterionic polymer

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) collectively represent small vesicles that are secreted from cells and carry biomolecules (e.g., miRNA, lncRNA, mRNA, proteins, lipids, metabolites, etc.) that originate in those cells. Body fluids, such as blood and saliva, include large numbers of EVs, making them potentially a rich source of diagnostic information. However, these EVs are mixtures of vesicles released from diseased tissues as well as from normal cells. This heterogeneous nature therefore blurs the clinical information obtainable from EV-based diagnosis. Here, we synthesized an EpCAM-affinity coating agent, which consists of a peptide aptamer for EpCAM and a zwitterionic MPC polymer, and have shown that this conjugate endowed the surfaces of inorganic materials with the preferential affinity to EpCAM-expressing EVs. This coating agent, designated as EpiVeta, could be useful as a coating for various diagnostic devices to allow concentration of cancer-related EVs from heterogeneous EV mixtures.