Nanofluidic Confined DNA Aptamers for Neuromorphic Multiplex Discrimination.

Abstract

Bioinspired nanofluidic systems that utilize ions as signal carriers hold great promise for emulating neural processing in biochemical sensing and neuromorphic computing. However, achieving parallel, brain-like processing of multiple biochemical signals remains a significant challenge. Herein, we present a nanofluidic artificial postsynaptic membrane (APM) functionalized with confined DNA aptamers to construct a neuromorphic signal processing platform. Target-induced conformational switching of DNA aptamers dynamically modulates ionic transport through nanochannels, effectively mimicking synaptic information transmission. The integration of cross-responsive aptamer-based APM units into a cascaded logic system enables signal processing without relying on the physical series network of nanochannels. By independently addressing and reading each unit, dendritic multi-input integration and brain-like information fusion are achieved at the signal-algorithm level, and 100% accurate discrimination of multiple targets is reached. This approach marks a conceptual shift from the traditional "one-probe-one-target" model toward a brain-inspired, multitarget recognition architecture. The fusion of DNA probes with nanofluidic logic and their cascade at the signal level enables the development of neuromorphic biochips with integrated processing capabilities for multiplexed signals.