Table 1.

Aptamer advantage vs. antibodies

Features	Monoclonal Antibody	Aptamer	Aptamer Advantage
Size	~ 150–170 kDa	~ 12–30 kDa (~ 30–80 nucleotides)	Aptamers, due to their small size, can penetrate tissues and cells, exhibit superior target access and blood clearance, and have a lower tendency to be toxic and immunogenic
Stability	Susceptible to high temperatures and pH changes Require refrigeration for storage The denaturation is irreversible	Fairly stable at ambient temperature The denaturation is reversible	Aptamers possess remarkable stability and remain effective even after prolonged storage. Moreover, they are capable of being transported at room temperature without any special handling requirements. This makes them a highly convenient and practical option
Target potential	Targets must produce an immune response, minimum target size ≥ 600 Daltons	Can bind to very small targets, minimum target size ≥ 60 Daltons	Aptamers can be selected against a wide range of targets, including small molecules, toxic compounds, and non-immunogenic substances
Development Process	Require immune response and animals through in vivo production and cell culture	Chemical synthesis through SELEX process	SELEX screens large molecular diversity and requires only a few nanomoles for selection, while ensuring batch-to-batch consistency and no contamination
Modification	Typically conjugated with one type of signaling or binding molecule	Can be modified at both the 5’ and 3’ end	Aptamers can be easily modified for attachment and easy addition of functionalities during synthesis
Production time and cost	The production requires long time (~ 4–6 months) and expensive in vivo procedures	The selected aptamers are chemically synthesized (~ 1–3 months), reducing the production cost	Faster development time means faster time to market or publication