Aptamer-based detection
and therapy have made substantial progress
with cost control and easy modification. However, the conformation
lability of an aptamer typically causes the dissociation of aptamer–target
complexes during harsh washes and other environmental stresses, resulting
in only moderate detection sensitivity and a decreasing therapeutic
effect. Herein, we report a robust covalent aptamer strategy to sensitively
detect nucleocapsid protein and potently neutralize spike protein
receptor binding domain (RBD), two of the most important proteins
of SARS-CoV-2, after testing different cross-link electrophilic groups
via integrating the specificity and efficiency. Covalent aptamers
can specifically convert aptamer–protein complexes from the
dynamic equilibrium state to stable and irreversible covalent complexes
even in harsh environments. Covalent aptamer-based ELISA detection
of nucleocapsid protein can surpass the gold standard, antibody-based
sandwich ELISA. Further, covalent aptamer performs enhanced functional
inhibition to RBD protein even in a blood vessel-mimicking flowing
circulation system. The robust covalent aptamer-based strategy is
expected to inspire more applications in accurate molecular modification,
disease biomarker discovery, and other theranostic fields.