A three-way junction structure-based isothermal exponential amplification strategy for sensitive detection of 3′-terminal 2′-O-methylated plant microRNA

Plant microRNAs (miRNAs) differ from animal miRNAs in that they are 2'-O-methylated at the 3' end nucleotide which limits the ability of plant miRNAs to serve as primers for polymerization reactions. Herein, we have rationally designed a three-way junction structure-based isothermal exponential amplification reaction (3WJ-EXPAR) which is well-suited for sensitive detection of 3'-terminal 2'-O-methylated miRNAs.