The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrate, a urine pretreatment method, and a method for providing information required for cancer diagnosis through urine metabolite analysis using same.

Provided is a method of preparing composite nanoparticles, which includes: a) preparing a metal nanocore having a nano-star shape from a first reaction solution in which a first metal precursor is mixed with a first buffer solution; b) fixing a Raman reporter in the metal nanocore; and c) forming a metal shell, which surrounds the nanocore in which the Raman reporter is fixed, from a second reaction solution in which the nanocore in which the Raman reporter is fixed, and a second metal precursor are mixed with a second buffer solution.

A surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate and its method of formation is disclosed. The surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate comprises a solid support, a first noble metal nanoparticles is disposed on the solid support, a porous oxide layer comprising transition metal oxide nanoparticles is disposed on the first noble metal nanoparticles and a second noble metal nanoparticles is disposed on the porous oxide layer. The porous oxide layer prevents contact between the first noble metal nanoparticles and the second noble metal nanoparticles and has a mean pore size of 2 to 30 nm.

A portable system is disclosed for collecting a sample from exhaled breath of a subject. Drug substance in the exhaled breath are detected or determined. The sample is collected for further analysis using mass-spectroscopy. The system comprises a sampling unit and a housing arranged to hold the sampling unit, the sampling unit is adapted to collect non-volatile and volatile compounds of the at least one drug substance from the exhaled breath from the subject. The housing has at least one inlet for the subject to exhale into the housing to the sampling unit and at least one outlet for the exhaled breath to exit through.

A method for analyzing or detecting methimazole (“MTZ”) comprising contacting a sample suspected of containing MTZ with the dendrimer-stabilized silver nanoparticles and performing surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). Graphene-dendrimer-stabilized silver nanoparticles (G-D-Ag).

A contrast-amplifying carrier for observing a sample, includes a transparent substrate bearing at least one absorbent coating suitable for behaving as an antireflection coating when it is illuminated at normal incidence at an illumination wavelength λ through the substrate and when the face of the coating opposite the substrate is in contact with a medium referred to as a transparent ambient medium, the refractive index n.sub.3 of which is lower than that of the refractive index n.sub.0 of the substrate. The absorbent coating comprises: an absorbent sublayer referred to as the contrast sublayer, deposited on the surface of the transparent substrate; and an absorbent layer referred to as the sensitive layer, distinct from the contrast sublayer and comprising between 1 and 5 sheets of a graphene-type material. Methods for producing and for using such a contrast-amplifying carrier are also provided.

Disclosed herein is a multiplexed design with three-dimensional plasmonic nanofocusing and confinement of light, demonstration of reproducible and robust single-molecule optical fingerprints using two complementary vibrational spectroscopy techniques (infrared and Raman spectroscopy), identification of respective vibrational modes which uniquely fingerprint the biomolecular species, and facile differentiation of respective fingerprints in DNA mixtures, as well as epigenetic modifications. While the nanometer scale mode volumes still prevent single letter identification of DNA sequence, we show an alternative method for identifying A, T, G, C DNA nucleotides in “k-mers” using sequences of these blocks as a unique and high-throughput alternative to single letter sequences (similar to binary and hexadecimal systems). Furthermore, additivity shown in single-molecule DNA mixtures and robust optical signatures can also be used in a raster-type step scan to identify single letter sequences. These results can pave the way for the development of a novel, high-throughput block optical sequencing (BOS) method.

A method for fast extracting an organic pollutant in a complex system is disclosed, which includes following steps. A surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectrum of an organic pollutant is divided to obtain P wavelength sub-intervals with overlapping regions. The P wavelength sub-intervals are screened to obtain ω wavelength sub-intervals. The ω wavelength sub-intervals are screened to obtain a required wavelength sub-interval. The required wavelength sub-interval is screened to obtain a required wavelength subset. A method and a system for fast detecting an organic pollutant in a complex system are also disclosed.

A sensor for measuring a pH value of a measuring liquid includes: a sensor element comprising a surface adapted to contact the measuring liquid; a radiation source configured to emit electromagnetic transmission radiation reaching the sensor element, wherein at least a portion of the transmission radiation is converted into measuring radiation by reflection and/or scattering in the region of the surface; a radiation receiver configured to receive the measuring radiation and convert it into electrical signals; and a measuring circuit connected to the radiation receiver and configured to determine a measured value representing the pH value of the measuring liquid from signals of the radiation receiver, wherein the surface adapted to contact the measuring liquid includes a pH-sensitive component and a SERS-active component.

Systems, methods, and devices are described herein for detecting and/or monitoring target extracellular vesicles (“EVs”), e.g., to detect and/or monitor cancer treatment, such as breast cancer, in a subject. The methods can include obtaining a nano-plasmonic array including nanostructures configured to amplify one or more specific wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, flowing a liquid sample over the nano-plasmonic array, optionally labeling target EVs captured on the nano-plasmonic array with one or more reporter groups, projecting electromagnetic radiation onto the labeled target EVs captured on the nano-plasmonic array, and capturing an image of the target EVs by receiving electromagnetic radiation emitted, scattered, or reflected by the labeled target EVs or by reporter groups on the labeled target EVs.