CE-SELEX: Isolating aptamers using capillary electrophoresis

Since their discovery in 1990, aptamers have gained increasing attention due to their high affinity and specificity for a wide range of target molecules.^1-5 While aptamer applications are growing exponentially, the time and difficulty of the process used to isolate aptamers are limiting widespread adoption. Recently, the high resolving power of capillary electrophoresis (CE) has been used to select high-affinity aptamers.^6,7 This offers a number of advantages over conventional selection protocols due to the dramatic enrichment rate and selection stringency made possible by CE. These advantages result in a significantly faster and simpler process allowing high-affinity aptamers to be obtained in several days rather than the weeks to months typical of pre-existing procedures. This chapter discusses the significance of CE-SELEX and describes details of the selection process.