Cancer Diagnosis through SERS and Other Related Techniques

Abstract

Cancer heterogeneity increasingly requires ultrasensitive techniques that allow early diagnosis for personalized treatment. In addition, they should preferably be non-invasive tools that do not damage surrounding tissues or contribute to body toxicity. In this context, liquid biopsy of biological samples such as urine, blood, or saliva represents an ideal approximation of what is happening in real time in the affected tissues. Plasmonic nanoparticles are emerging as an alternative or complement to current diagnostic techniques, being able to detect and quantify novel biomarkers such as specific peptides and proteins, microRNA, circulating tumor DNA and cells, and exosomes. Here, we review the latest ideas focusing on the use of plasmonic nanoparticles in coded and label-free surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy. Moreover, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy, colorimetric assays, dynamic light scattering (DLS) spectroscopy, mass spectrometry or total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy among others are briefly examined in order to highlight the potential and versatility of plasmonics.

Advances in Optical Aptasensors for Early Detection and Diagnosis of Various Cancer Types

“…SERS spectroscopy has emerged as a promising tool for characterization in the field of nanoscience, i.e., widely investigated in cancer-related applications ( 60 – 62 ). The major advantages of SERS imaging are the mapping of a sample with a high spatial resolution (< 0.5 microns in the visible range) and the capability of multiplexed analysis ( 63 ). The ultrasensitive vibrational spectroscopic technique SERS can be used to detect several target molecules in a single experiment ( 60 , 64 ).…”

MicroRNAs from Liquid Biopsy Derived Extracellular Vesicles: Recent Advances in Detection and Characterization Methods

“…Metallic particles provide enhancing properties to the detectable signal due to a combination of electromagnetic and chemical effects [152]. The extension of SERS for biomedical use required additional methodological adaptations that allowed the detection of DNA, proteins, miRNAs, and exosomes from a variety of biofluids [153,154]. The detection of biological molecules is usually done using either an unlabeled or labeled approach.…”

Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for Cancer Immunotherapy Applications: Opportunities, Challenges, and Current Progress in Nanomaterial Strategies

“…The advantages of SERS immunoimaging include high spatiotemporal resolution, multiplexing with minimal spectral overlapping, and specific Raman reporter-labeling of targets [58,[61][62][63]. In recent years, there has been an increasing uptake of designed SERS-active nanomaterials for cancer immunotherapy applications, particularly for cell surface immune checkpoint biomarkers.…”

“…In recent years, various new SERS-active nanomaterials have been developed to enhance performance in multiplexed SERS immunomarker imaging [ 40 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 ]. The advantages of SERS immunoimaging include high spatiotemporal resolution, multiplexing with minimal spectral overlapping, and specific Raman reporter-labeling of targets [ 58 , 61 , 62 , 63 ]. In recent years, there has been an increasing uptake of designed SERS-active nanomaterials for cancer immunotherapy applications, particularly for cell surface immune checkpoint biomarkers.…”