Ultra‐Sensitive and Unlabeled SERS Nanosheets for Specific Identification of Glucose in Body Fluids

Abstract

The detection of biomolecules utilizing surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is highly trending in research, but the unlabeled and sensitive detection of saccharides in body fluids is challenging. Here, a novel SERS substrate (AgNS600) is fabricated by physical scratching of smooth silver sheets, which successfully achieves enhanced SERS fingerprinting by capturing glucose molecules through nanoscale grooves on the surface of the substrate to form multi‐dimensional “hot spot” regions. The platform proves to be rapid, reliable, and reproducible, with a lower detection limit of 0.5 amol L−1 in deionized water. Further detection of multiple monosaccharides, polysaccharides, and mix samples, which are distinguished with machine learning and heat map, demonstrates the versatility and specificity of the platform. Importantly, real samples are explored and the results show that the platform is able to detect and recognize SERS signals of glucose in the blood, urine, tears, and perspiration, and non‐destructive predict diabetes by analyzing the signal intensity of different characteristic peaks. In this work, it is the first non‐chemical, unlabeled determination of glucose with high sensitivity via SERS, which provides a potential strategy for advancing the clinical development of SERS technology and the early diagnosis of glucose metabolic diseases.

Advances in Label-Free Glucose Detection Using Self-Assembled Nanoparticles and Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

“…Label-free surface-enhanced Raman scattering emerges as a promising technique for the detection and analysis of biological samples, attributed to its cost-efficiency, convenience, rapidity, and universality. − In our group’s preceding research, we harnessed aggregators to induce ‘hot spots’ via nanoparticle aggregation, thereby enabling the label-free detection of key biological macromolecules (nucleic acids, proteins, and lipids) and pathogenic microorganisms, including viruses and bacteria. − Significantly, we also innovated a novel SERS substrate, dubbed AgNS 600 , crafted through the physical abrasion of smooth silver nanosheets, this substrate demonstrated sensitivity in capturing the distinctive SERS fingerprints of glucose. On the basis of previous research, we propose the computational design and synthesis of nanoparticles specifically engineered to generate ‘hot spots’ tailored for the detection of glucose molecules.…”