Raman spectroscopy is a powerful tool in the field of biomedicine for disease diagnosis owing to its potential to provide the molecular fingerprint of biological samples. However due to the inherent weak nature of the Raman process, there is a constant quest for enhancing the sensitivity of this technique for enhanced diagnostic efficiency. This thesis focuses on achieving this goal by integrating advanced methods with Raman spectroscopy. Firstly this thesis explores the applicability of a laser based fluorescence suppression technique – Wavelength Modulated Raman Spectroscopy (WMRS) - for suppressing the broad luminescence background which often obscure the Raman peaks. The WMRS technique was optimized for its applications in single cell studies and tissue studies for enhanced sensing without compromising the throughput. It has been demonstrated that the optimized parameter would help to chemically profile single cell within 6 s. A two fold enhancement in SNR of Raman bands was demonstrated when WMRS was implemented in fiber Raman based systems for tissue analysis. The suitability of WMRS on highly sensitive single molecule detection techniques such as Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) and Surface Enhanced Resonance Raman Spectroscopy (SERRS) was also explored. Further this optimized technique was successfully used to address an important biological problem in the field of immunology. This involved label-free identification of major immune cell subsets from human blood. Later part of this thesis explores a multimodal approach where Raman spectroscopy was combined with Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) for enhanced diagnostic sensitivity (>10%). This approach was used to successfully discriminate between ex-vivo adenocarcinoma tissues and normal colon tissues. Finally this thesis explores the design and implementation of a specialized fiber Raman probe that is compatible with surgical environments. This probe was originally developed to be compatible with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) environment. It has the potential to be used for performing minimally invasive optical biopsy during interventional MRI procedures.

The adsorbate formed by adsorption of thiophenol on a polycrystalline gold electrode and brought into contact with aqueous solutions of 1 M HClO4 and 0.1 M KClO4 has been studied using cyclic voltammetry and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy. A strong adsorption is deduced from observations made using cyclic voltammetry. From the SER spectra, interactions of thiophenol with the gold surface via a gold–sulfur bond with the aromatic ring pointing away from the surface is concluded for both electrolyte solutions. / Dieser Beitrag ist aufgrund einer (DFG-geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.

Nesta tese de doutorado foram desenvolvidas metodologias para obter espectros Raman intensificados pela superficie de adsorbatos orgânicos em eletrodos de Fe, Co e Ni, que são metais que apresentam baixo fator de intensificação SERS. Foram desenvolvidos procedimentos de ativação eletroquímica para eletrodos puros dos três metais. Os protocolos de ativação eletroquímica foram utilizados para obter espectros SERS de piridina, 1,10-fenantrolina e 2- e 4-aminopiridina. O fator de intensificação determinado para o três metais, da ordem de 102-103 vezes, depende fortemente do modo vibracional do adsorbato. Os espectros SERS da piridina nos metais de transição, quando comparados com os cálculos de espectros vibracionais de cluster da piridina com átomos metálicos por DFT mostram que a formação do radical α-piridil com a adsorção nos metais de transição, proposta na literatura, não ocorre. Os perfis de excitação SERS calculados pelo modelo de transferência de carga da piridina apresentaram boa correlação com os dados experimentais. Os resultados SERS para a 1,10-fenantrolina mostraram que a espécie que adsorve é a molécula livre, com a espécie adsorvida semelhante ao complexo sintetizado. A dependência das intensidades relativas com o potencial nos espectros SERS é diferente da observada para os espectros Raman ressonante dos complexos da phen com metais de transição, mostrando que o estado excitado monitorado pelas duas técnicas é diferente. O monitoramento da adsorção das 2-aminopiridinas nos metais de transição permitiu sugerir a adsorção pelo anel piridínico para potenciais menos negativos e através dos nitrogênios piridínico e amínico para potenciais mais negativos em eletrodos de Co e Ni, e para o Fe adsorve apenas pelo nitrogênio piridínico. Em solução eletrolítica 0,1 mol.L-1 KCl, a 4-aminopiridina passa de fracamente ligada para um complexo de superficie semelhante ao complexo sintetizado para potenciais mais negativos. Utilizando a solução eletrolítica 0,1 mol.L-1 KI, as duas espécies são observadas para um intervalo maior de potenciais. No eletrodo de Ni, observa-se 4-aminopiridina protonada para E = -0,7 V; para potenciais mais negativos um complexo de superficie semelhante ao complexo sintetizado é observado. Os filmes eletrodepositados de Co e Ni em eletrodos de Ag ativado eletroquimicamente permitiram a obtenção de espectros SERS da py com alto fator de intensificação. Os filmes com espessuras maiores que 2 monocamadas de Co ou Ni apresentaram bandas intensas da piridina adsorvida nestes metais, sem bandas da piridina adsorvida em Ag, indicando que os filmes não apresentam pinholes, com intensidade SERS 100 vezes maior do que os metais puros. As intensidades relativas dos espectros SERS são similares à obtidas nos espectros SERS da piridina nos metais puros para filmes finos mais espessos do que 7 monocamadas. Foram construídos substratos de Au SERS-ativos com alto desempenho e reprodutibilidade por eletrodeposição sobre uma máscara de microesferas de poliestireno. Os espectros SERS da 4-mercaptopiridina adsorvida nos substratos otimizados apresentaram intensidade 2 vezes maior do que o eletrodo de Au ativado eletroquimicamente. A reprodutibilidade do sinal SERS para estes substratos foi de ± 15 %, indicando que estes substratos podem ser utilizados como sensores para sistemas de interesse analítico. / Surface-enhanced Raman spectra of organic adsorbates on Fe, Co and Ni electrodes were acquired after the development of specific methodologies described in this PhD thesis. Electrochemical activation procedures were developed for the three bare metaIs electrodes. The electrochemical activation protocols were applied for the acquisition of SERS spectra of pyridine, 1,10-phenanthroline and 2- and 4-aminopyridine on Fe, Co e Ni electrodes. The total and relative intensities changes of SERS bands with the applied potentials were explained by the charge transfer mechanism, which had a large contribution in the SERS enhancement for these metaIs. The enhancement factor determined for the three metaIs, on the 102-103 times range, strongly depends on the adsorbate\' s vibrational modes. The SERS spectra of pyridine on the transition metals and vibrational spectra calculations of pyridine with metallic atoms showed that the formation of α-pyridil in the adsorption on transition metaIs, suggested in the literature, didn\'t occur. The calculated pyridine SERS excitation profiles present reasonable correlaton with the experimental data. The SERS results for 1,10-phenanthroline showed that the free molecule was the adsorbing species. The potential dependence of the SERS relative intensities was different from those of the resonance Raman spectra of 1,10-phenanthroline complexes with transition metal ions, indicating that different excited states were probed by the two techniques. 2-aminopyridine adsorbed through the pyridinic ring at less negative potentials and through both pyridinic and aminic nitrogens at more negative potentials on Co and Ni electrodes, but for Fe electrode it adsorbed exclusively through the pyridinic nitrogen. 4-aminopyridine adsorbed perpendicularly to the electrode. In 0,1 mol.L-1 KCl electrolytic solution, 4-aminopyridine changed from weak1y bound to a surface complex similar to the synthesized complex at more negative potentials. In 0,1 mol.L-1 KI electrolytic solution, both species were observed in a larger potential interval. On the Ni electrode, protonated 4aminopyridine was observed for V = -0.7 V, and for more negative potentials a surface complex, similar to the synthesized one, was observed. The electrodeposition of ultrathin film of Co and Ni on electrochemically-activated Ag electrodes allowed obtaining SERS spectra of pyridine with high enhancement factors. The SERS spectra of py for films thickness higher than 2 monolayers of Co or Ni presented intense bands of pyridine adsorbed on these metals, and no bands of pyridine adsorbed on Ag were observed, indicanting the absence of pinholes in the films. The relative intensities of SERS spectra on the thin films were similar to those obtained for the SERS of pyridine on the bare metaIs electrodes for films thicker than 7 monolayers, but with SERS intensity 100 times higher. The SERS activity and signal strength reproducibility of Au nanostructured substrates obtained by electrodeposition on a polystyrene masking were evaluated. The SERS spectra of 4-mercaptopyridine adsorbed on optimized electrodes presented intensities 2 times greater than those of the electrochemically activated Au electrode. The SERS intensity reproducibility for these substrates was ± 15%, indicating the potential use of such substrates as sensors.

Intracellular redox potential (IRP) is a measure of how oxidising or reducing the environment is within a cell. It is a function of numerous factors including redox couples, antioxidant enzymes and reactive oxygen species. Disruption of the tightly regulated redox status has been linked to the initiation and progression of cancer. However, there is very limited knowledge about the quantitative nature of the redox potential and pH gradients that exist in cancer tumour models. Multicellular tumour spheroids (MTS) are three-dimensional cell cultures that possess their own microenvironments, similar to those found in tumours. From the necrotic core to the outer proliferating layer there exist gradients of oxygen, lactate, pH and drug penetration. Tumours also have inadequate vasculature resulting in a state of hypoxia. Hypoxia is a key player in metabolic dysregulation but can also provide cells with resistance against cancer treatments, particularly chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The primary hypoxia regulators are HIFs (Hypoxia Inducible Factors) which under low O2 conditions bind a hypoxia response element, inhibiting oxidative phosphorylation and upregulating glycolysis which has two significant implications: the first is an increase in levels of NADPH/NADH, the main electron donors found in cells which impacts the redox state, whilst the second is a decrease in intracellular pH (pHi) because of increased lactate production. Thus, redox state and intracellular pHi can be used as indicators of metabolic changes within 3D cultures and provide insight into cellular response to therapy. Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) provides a real-time, high resolution method of measuring pHi and IRP in cell culture. It allows for quick and potentially portable analysis of MTS, providing a new platform for monitoring response to drugs and therapy in an unobtrusive manner. Redox and pH-active probes functionalised to Au nanoshells were readily taken up by prostate cancer cell lines and predominantly found to localise in the cytosol. These probes were characterised by density functional theory and spectroelectrochemistry, and their in vitro behaviour modelled by the chemical induction of oxidative and reductive stress. Next, targeting nanosensors to different zones of the MTS allowed for spatial quantification of redox state and pHi throughout the structure and the ability to map the effects of drug treatments on MTS redox biology. The magnitude of the potential gradient can be quantified as free energy (ΔG) and used as a measurement of MTS viability. Treatment of PC3 MTS with staurosporine, an apoptosis inducer, was accompanied by a decrease in free energy gradients over time, whereas treatment of MTS with cisplatin, a drug to which they are resistant, showed an increase in viability indicating a compensatory mechanism and hence resistance. Finally, using this technique the effects of ionising radiation on IRP and pHi in the tumour model was explored. Following exposure to a range of doses of x-ray radiation, as well as single and multi-fractionated regimes, IRP and pHi were measured and MTS viability assessed. Increased radiation dosage diminished the potential gradient across the MTS and decreased viability. Similarly, fractionation of a single large dose was found to enhance MTS death. This novel SERS approach therefore has the potential to not only be used as a mode of drug screening and tool for drug development, but also for pre-clinical characterisation of tumours enabling clinicians to optimise radiation regimes in a patient-specific manner.

This thesis reports the investigation of spontaneous Raman Spectroscopy (RS) for its applicability in early drug discovery. A key focus has been to develop an understanding of the applicability of RS for the quantification and localisation of compound concentration inside mammalian cells. Further investigation into the use of Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) for research on Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) and Leishmania donovani as well as investigating applicability for cancer research are decisive parts of this work. The key work described in this thesis is the investigation of whole cell concentration of compounds inside THP-1 and Madin Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) cells. For true quantification the Cell Silent Region (CSR) is used to measure without interference from cellular background signal. The model compound is erlotinib, an anti-cancer drug with an alkyne group expressing a peak in the CSR. The developed RS system is calibrated using the current gold standard technique Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography tandem Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). However, because of the single cell nature of the RS information on inter cell variability can be extracted. The RS measurements suggest that there is a large variation of concentration within single cell populations. The RS measurements can therefore give insight in single cell behaviour within a large cell population. Findings shows that washing cycles, before fixation, alter the intra-cellular concentrations significantly. This is hypothesised to be caused by the sudden change in concentration on the outside of the cell that applies an osmotic pressure, leading to loss of substance from inside the cell wall. Localisation of erlotinib is shown within THP-1 cells and points towards an accumulation inside the cell nucleus. Later, internalised Au nano-particles in the range of 30 nm to 80 nm have been investigated for their enhancement effects and localisation inside THP-1 cells. Au nano-particles are found to be internalised easily by differentiated THP-1 cells and accumulate in lysosomes. This allows for a high local enhancement of the spontaneous Raman signal. However, no advantage for the detection of lysosomally trapped compounds (chloroquine, chlorpromazine) was achieved. The detection of substances without a signal in the CSR was achieved without enhancement. Nonetheless, compounds with intrinsic peaks in the CSR could benefit from this enhancement. Lastly the RS system is explored for alternative uses in early drug discovery. This includes the detection of toxicity as well as the discrimination of cell types. Toxicity has been detected using optically trapped THP-1 cells and doxorubicin. Utilising Principal Component Analysis (PCA) combined with Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) on these measured spectra, allowed for a clear discrimination of toxically influenced from healthy cells. Differences mainly show up in DNA content caused by the mode of action of doxorubicin and caused by the trapping, which generates most of the signal within the nucleus of the cell. Discriminating cancerogenic (DU145) from healthy prostate cells (PNT2) has been achieved by probing fixed cells and evaluating the acquired Raman spectra with a PCA/LDA combination. The accuracy of separation of these cells when tested with a 10-fold cross-validation technique, is above 98 %, allowing a good discrimination.

ABSTRACT PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF SILVER SERS NANOTAGS Kibar, Seda M.S., Department of Chemistry Supervisor: Prof. Dr. M&uuml / rvet Volkan December 2010, 88 pages Tags are materials used for labeling substances and so make possible the qualitative and quantitative analysis both in macroscopic and microscopic world. Nowadays, surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy became the favored one among the optical based-tag detection systems. Progress in surface enhanced Raman detection and imaging technologies depends on the availability of Raman labels with strong light scattering characteristics. In this study various SERS nanotags were prepared. An ideal SERS nanotag consists of three parts, core nanoparticle for enhancement, Raman active molecule for signature and a shell for protection and further functionalization. As a core material, silver nanoparticles were prepared using the chemical reduction method with sodium citrate as reductant. SERS enhancement provided by Ag particles prepared was examined. For colloidal stabilization and further surface modifications, silica with a controlled thickness was deposited on Ag nanoparticles. Three single-dye doped nanotags, Ag-BCB@SiO2 Ag-CFV@SiO2 and Ag-CV@SiO2 were prepared using positively charged dyes, brilliant cresyl blue (BCB), cresyl fast violet (CFV) and cresyl violet (CV). The effects of silica thickness and dye concentration in the reaction medium were examined. Stability of prepared nanotags and repeatability of the method were investigated. Multi-dye doped nanotags were prepared using BCB and CFV solutions mixed at various concentration ratios. Resulting Raman spectra Ag-BCB-CFV@SiO2 nanotags successfully exhibited characteristic peaks of each dye with a good resolution. In addition, the molar ratio between dyes BCB and CFV was reflected on the related spectra. A linear correlation was observed between the molar ratio of the dyes and their Raman intensity ratio.

Nanoscience dominates virtually every field of science and technology in the 21st century. Nanoparticles are of fundamental interest since they possess unique size- dependent properties (optical, electrical, mechanical, chemical, magnetic etc.), which are quite different from the bulk and the atomic state. Bimetallic nanoparticles are of particular interest since they combine the advantages of the individual monometallic counterparts. The present study focuses on bimetallic nanoparticles containing gold as one of the constituents. Au-Pd, Au-Pt and Au-Ag bimetallic/alloy nanoparticles have been prepared by four different synthetic methods, and characterised by a variety of techniques, with an emphasis on Au-Ag alloy systems in the solution phase as well as in the form of nanostructured films on solid substrates. Au- Ag alloy nanoparticles have been used to demonstrate two different applications. The first is the use of Au-Ag monolayer protected alloy clusters in demonstrating single electron charging events in the solution phase as well as in the dry state. Single electron transfer events involving nanosized particles are being probed extensively due to their potential applications in the field of electronics. The second is an analytical application, involving the use of trisodium citrate capped Au-Ag alloy hydrosols as substrates for surface enhanced Raman and resonance Raman scattering [SE(R)RS] studies. The sols have been used for single molecule detection purposes. Various organic molecules such as quinones, phthalocyanines and methyl violet have been self- assembled in a stepwise manner on the nanoparticulate as well as bulk Au, Ag and Au-Ag surfaces, and characterised extensively by spectroscopic, electrochemical and spectroelectrochemical techniques.

Raman spectroscopy is a promising technique because it contains abundant vibrational chemical information. However, Raman spectroscopy is restricted by its small scattering cross section, and many techniques have been developed to amplify Raman scattering intensity. In this dissertation, I study two of these techniques, coherent Raman scattering and surface enhanced Raman scattering and discuss their properties. In the first part of my dissertation, I investigate two coherent Raman processes, coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) and stimulated Raman scattering (SRS). In CARS project, I mainly focus on the molecular resonance effect on detection sensitivity, and I find the detection sensitivity can be pushed into 10 [micromolar] with the assistance of molecular resonance. Also, I am able to retrieve background-free Raman spectra from nonresonant signals. For SRS, we develop a new SRS system by applying spectral focusing mechanism technique. We examine the feasibility and sensitivity of our SRS system. The SRS spectra of standards obtained from our system is consistent with literature, and the sensitivity of our system can achieve 10 times above shot-noise limit. In second part of this dissertation, I study surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and related plasmonic effects. I synthesize different shapes of nanoparticles, including nanorod, nanodimer structure with gap and pyramids by template method, and study how electric field enhancement effects correlate to SERS by two photon luminescence (TPL). Also, I build an optical system to study optical image, spectra and particle morphology together. I find that SERS intensity distribution is inhomogeneous and closely related to nanoparticle shape and polarization direction. However, TPL and SERS are not completely correlated, and I believe different relaxation pathways of TPL and SERS and coupling of LSPR and local fields at different frequencies cause unclear correlation between them. / text

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Optical assays to detect cancer-associated molecular biomarkers in biological substrates are commonly performed with antibody-targeted organic dye contrast agents but the potential for precise quantification, long-term imaging, and multiplexed readouts is limited by chemical and optical instability, non-optimal spectral characteristics, and complicated synthetic chemistry of the dyes. This dissertation tested the hypothesis that a novel class of optical contrast agents termed polymer-protected Raman-encoded nanoparticle tags (PRENTs) provides practical advantages over existing optical technologies for molecular diagnostic applications. First, PRENTs were developed through a modular design utilizing gold-nanoparticle-Raman reporter complexes protected and functionalized by polyethylene glycol derivatives. PRENTs produced optical readouts through surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) that were brighter and more photostable than the fluorescence of semiconductor quantum dots under identical experimental conditions. Unique spectral signatures were produced with a broader class of Raman reporters than is possible with silica coated Raman tags. Spectral signatures and colloidal stability of PRENTs were unaffected by harsh chemical conditions that cause spectral changes and aggregation of dyes, quantum dots, and protein coated Raman tags. Antibody-targeted PRENTs specifically tagged cell surface cancer biomarkers on living cells at reasonable integration times. PRENTs were non-toxic to cells under conditions exceeding those required for sensitive molecular detection. Next, PRENTs were efficiently optimized for excitation with near-infrared light through inclusion of near-infrared chromophores as Raman reporters and exploitation of the size-dependent optical enhancement of gold nanoparticles. Third, the development of a slide-based Raman-linked immunosorbent assay using antibody-conjugated PRENTs enabled quantification of protein biomarkers with a dynamic range of 3 to 4 logs. In summary, this dissertation establishes PRENTs as novel optical tags with unique features useful for biomedical applications and provides insights for further assay development.