Signal-amplifying conjugated polymer-DNA hybrid chips.

Bio-/synthetic hybrid materials have recently received considerable attention owing to their potential biomedical applications. The most reliable way of identifying any biological target is through its genetic code. However, the current commercial DNA microarray requires costly and time-consuming PCR to multiply the number of analyte DNA molecules and label the analyte DNA with a fluorescent dye because of the low detection limit. In this context, devising self-signal-amplifying DNA microarrays can realize low-cost, fast, and reliable detection of nucleic acids. Herein, we report signal-amplifying DNA chips fabricated by on-chip DNA synthesis on a thin film of a newly developed conjugated polymer (Figure 1 and the chemical structure in Figure 2a).