Mineralized aggregates based on native protein phase transition for non-destructive diagnosis of seborrheic skin by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy†

Abstract

The non-homeostasis of sebum secretion by the sebaceous glands in a complicated microenvironment dramatically impacts the skin health of many people in the world. However, the complexity and hydrophobicity of sebum mean a lack of diagnostic tools, which makes it challenging to determine the reason behind cortical imbalances. Herein, a biomimetic mineralized aggregates (PTL@Au and PTB@Au) strategy has been proposed, which could obtain molecular information about sebum by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). The breaking of disulfide bonds leads to changes in hydrogen bonding, which transform the natural protein into amyloid-like phase transition protein with β-sheets. It provides sites for the nucleation and crystallization of gold nanocrystals to build mineralized aggregates. The mineralized aggregates show robust adhesion stability at the interfaces of different materials through hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions. The stabilization, hydrophobicity (contact angle: 134°), and optical transmission (75%) of the structure could result in superior SERS performance for sebum analysis. It should be noted that this enables the sebum detection of clinical samples while ensuring safety. Such generalized bionic mineralization construction and diagnosis methods also serve as an advanced paradigm for a range of biomedical applications.