Fluorescent indicator displacement assay of ligands targeting 10 microRNA precursors.

Fluorescent indicator displacement (FID) assay is a rapid and convenient assay for identifying new ligands that bind to the target molecules. In our previous studies, we have shown that a series of 2,7-diaminoalkoxy xanthone and thioxanthone derivatives can be used as fluorescent indicators for detecting the interaction between RNA and a ligand. The xanthone and thioxanthone fluorochromes showed efficient fluorescence quenching upon binding to target RNA. Subsequent displacement of the bound-fluorochrome with a ligand that binds more strongly to the target RNA led to the recovery of the fluorescence by releasing the fluorochrome from RNA. Here we report a pilot screening of a chemical library that contains 9600 structurally diverse compounds for molecules that bind to a specific miRNA precursor using the FID assay.