Fabrication of SERS nanoprobe and its application to cancer cell imaging

We report a highly sensitive imaging technology using surface-enhanced Raman scattering nanoparticles. Fluorescence microscopy is a well-known imaging technique which provides a specific protein distribution inside cells. However, most of currently available fluorescent organic dyes have relatively weak emission intensities and they are also photo-bleached quickly. In order to resolve this problem, more sensitive and stable probes are still needed. In the present work, the biomedical imaging technique using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) nanoprobes has been developed. SERS detection is a powerful analytical technique that allows ultra-sensitive chemical or biochemical analysis in terms of unlimited multiplexing and single molecule sensitivity. In this paper, the synthesis and characterization of the functional SERS-imaging probes and their biological application are introduced.