Accurate measurementes of RNA molecules inside and outside cells is essential to understand RNA secretion mechanisms and exRNA function. However, this has proven challenging because exRNA usually contain many post transcriptionally-modified bases and their extracellular half life is also highly variable. We are trying to develop new sequencing and RT-qPCR techniques which overcome many of these hurdles in order to get more reliable snapshots of the extracellular RNAome. 

The analysis of extracellular vesicles (EVs) and exRNA demands costly equipment and laborious procedures which require trained personnel and dedicated infrastructure. Our group is working in the development of semi-automatic point-of-care (POC) devices capable of measuring these analytes in real time and with low costs. Availability of devices like these will push liquid biopsy-based diagnosis to the next level. We are currently working on electrochemical biosensors and colorimetric assays based on gold nanoparticles.