Design and Synthesis of SERS Materials for In Vivo Molecular Imaging and Biosensing

Abstract

Surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a feasible and ultra‐sensitive method for biomedical imaging and disease diagnosis. SERS is widely applied to in vivo imaging due to the development of functional nanoparticles encoded by Raman active molecules (SERS nanoprobes) and improvements in instruments. Herein, the recent developments in SERS active materials and their in vivo imaging and biosensing applications are overviewed. Various SERS substrates that have been successfully used for in vivo imaging are described. Then, the applications of SERS imaging in cancer detection and in vivo intraoperative guidance are summarized. The role of highly sensitive SERS biosensors in guiding the detection and prevention of diseases is discussed in detail. Moreover, its role in the identification and resection of microtumors and as a diagnostic and therapeutic platform is also reviewed. Finally, the progress and challenges associated with SERS active materials, equipment, and clinical translation are described. The present evidence suggests that SERS could be applied in clinical practice in the future.

Bimetallic core–shell nanocrystals: opportunities and challenges

“…[37][38][39] Another fascinating optical property of plasmonic metal nanocrystals is their shape-and size-dependent LSPR, which contributed to the signal enhancement of surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). 40,41 When the surface of the plasmonic nanocrystal is covered by a shell made of catalytic metal, SERS offers a way to achieve in situ monitoring of chemical reactions. Fig.…”

Advancements in SERS‐based biological detection and its application and perspectives in pancreatic cancer

“…SERS is a non-invasive, rapid, and highly sensitive detection method. 47,48 The technique can detect characteristic fingerprint peaks for different types of cells, proteins, 49 miRNA, 50 and DNA. 51 Therefore, SERS has unique advantages in the detection of biological samples.…”

Recent Trends in SERS-Based Plasmonic Sensors for Disease Diagnostics, Biomolecules Detection, and Machine Learning Techniques

“…This technique is label-free, rapid, non-destructive, and water compatible and offers the fingerprint of the molecule, making it suitable for numerous applications. Nobel metals such as Au, Ag, and Cu and their alloys are the widely used materials for SERS for their tunability in the visible and IR region, inertness, sensitivity, and compatibility [ 39 , 40 ]. Despite the superior performance of Ag owing to its high-quality resonance in the visible region, Au is the preferred material, as it is known to be biocompatible and non-reactive in an oxygen atmosphere.…”