It is very challenging to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease (AD) at the early pathological stage. Some diagnostic methods, including imaging of β-amyloid (Aβ) peptides using positron-emission tomography (PET) and quantification of Aβ in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), have been proposed for AD diagnosis. However, these methods are costly and very invasive. Detection of Aβ peptides such as Aβ40 and Aβ42 from human blood is considered a promising diagnostic for the early-stage diagnosis of AD. However, this is of a great challenge due to their low levels in the blood, requiring a sensitive and multiplexed sensing method. Here, we demonstrate a SERS nanoprobes-based immunoassay for the sensitive detection of Aβ peptides in the human blood. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) nanoprobes were prepared, and they produced strong and stable SERS signals without overlapping. The SERS nanoparticles exhibited their own SERS signals of which enhancement was up to 1.5x10<sup>6</sup>. The SERS nanoprobes, conjugated with an antibody specific to Aβ40 or Aβ42, could selectively detect the AD biomarkers Aβ40 and Aβ42 from the human serum through their SERS signals. The SERS nanoprobes-based immunoassay can be extended for the sensitive and selective detection of various protein biomarkers.

SERS nanoprobe immunoassay for non-invasive diagnosis of alzheimer’s disease

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ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.