Enrichment of cell-targeting and population-specific aptamers by fluorescent-activated cell sorting

In a sophisticated approach to the systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) of cell-type-specific nucleic acid aptamers, the title technique was combined with the use of combinatorial nucleic acid libraries to target a defined subpopulation within composite mixtures of cells (see picture). The ssDNA library after 10 selection cycles bound vital Burkitt lymphoma cells more effectively than the starting library