Direct surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy of nucleic acids: from fundamental studies to real-life applications

Abstract

Plasmonic optical biosensors for the analysis of nucleic acids have drawn a great deal of interest in nanomedicine because of their capability to overcome major limitations of conventional methods. Within this realm, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-based sensing is progressively emerging as a powerful analytical tool beyond the basic grounds of academia to viable commercial products. SERS benefits from the synergistic combination between the intrinsic structural specificity and experimental flexibility of Raman spectroscopy, the extremely high sensitivity provided by plasmonic nanomaterials, and the tremendous advances in nanofabrication techniques and spectroscopic instrumentation. SERS application to nucleic acids analysis has been largely restricted to indirect sensing approaches, where a SERS reporter and oligonucleotide ligands are typically combined onto the nanomaterials to enable extrinsic detection of the target sequences. On the other hand, the acquisition of the intrinsic SERS vibrational fingerprint of nucleic acids (direct sensing) has traditionally suffered from major limitations. However, recent years have witnessed a burst of interest in this area, largely driven by the efforts to address key reproducibility and sensitivity issues. In this tutorial review, we summarize and discuss the most recent cutting-edge research in the field of direct SERS sensing of nucleic acids by coherently organising the diverse data reported in the literature in a structurally logical fashion.

Surface‐enhanced Raman scattering of 4,4'‐diaminostilbene: Dependence of spectral features and resonant enhancement on surface coverage

“…Surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is recognized as one of the most powerful methods of vibrational spectroscopy. High sensitivity and selectivity of SERS allow in using it successfully both as a scientific research instrument and as an analytical tool in practical applications . At any implementations, the analysis of SERS profiles together with the assignment of spectral features is an important stage essential for the correct theoretical conclusions and reliable chemical detection.…”

“…High sensitivity and selectivity of SERS allow in using it successfully both as a scientific research instrument [1][2][3] and as an analytical tool in practical applications. [4][5][6][7][8][9] At any implementations, the analysis of SERS profiles together with the assignment of spectral features is an important stage essential for the correct theoretical conclusions and reliable chemical detection. Understanding an influence of local conditions on the spectral profiles is also of principal significance in the context of various SERS applications.…”

Cooperative surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy enhancement in Au nanorod/SiO2 nanoparticle solutions

“…SERS signal also can be enhanced by chemical enhancement mechanism, which involves charge transfer between metal and molecules . Due to the leaping developments of SERS‐active materials and the analysis techniques, detection and even imaging of single molecules are now achievable . Because SERS possesses strong distance dependence of I ~ r −12 , analytes for solid‐ or liquid‐state SERS are demanded to aggregate close at the interparticle junctions to achieve high sensitivity .…”

Surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy for successful probing of itraconazole within poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) nanoparticles

“…The surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) emerged as a powerful analytical tool for sensitive and selective detection of species adsorbed onto or nearby noble metal nanostructures, such as silver and gold, leading to the development of an ultrasensitive Raman spectroscopy . Recently, the SERS effect has been successfully used to study glycine loaded into polyethylene glycol NPs .…”

“…The surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) emerged as a powerful analytical tool for sensitive and selective detection of species adsorbed onto or nearby noble metal nanostructures, such as silver and gold, leading to the development of an ultrasensitive Raman spectroscopy. [11][12][13][14][15] Recently, the SERS effect has been successfully used to study glycine loaded into polyethylene glycol NPs. [16] However, to the best of our knowledge, the SERS effect has not yet been used to investigate drugs loaded within polymeric-based NPs and also to investigate the drug interaction with the polymeric template after loading.…”