Highly sensitive technique for detection of adulterants in centella herbal samples using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS)

Towards solving the reproducibility crisis in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy-based pesticide detection

Growing concerns about pesticide residues in agriculture are pushing the scientific community to develop innovative and efficient methods for detecting these substances at low concentrations down to the molecular level. In this context, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a powerful analytical method that has so far already undergone some validation for its effectiveness in pesticide detection. However, despite its great potential, SERS faces significant difficulties obtaining reproducible and accurate pesticide spectra, particularly for some of the most widely used pesticides, such as malathion, chlorpyrifos, and imidacloprid. Those inconsistencies can be attributed to several factors, such as interactions between pesticides and SERS substrates and the variety of substrates and solvents used. In addition, differences in the equipment used to obtain SERS spectra and the lack of standards for control experiments further complicate the reproducibility and reliability of SERS data. This review systematically discusses the problems mentioned above, including a comprehensive analysis of the challenges in precisely evaluating SERS spectra for pesticide detection. We not only point out the existing limitations of the method, which can be traced in previous review works, but also offer practical recommendations to improve the quality and comparability of SERS spectra, thereby expanding the potential applications of the method in such an essential field as pesticide detection.

Flexible Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Tape Based on Ag Nanostructured Substrate for On-Site Analyte Detection

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has emerged as a powerful surface analytical technique that amplifies Raman scattering signals of molecules adsorbed onto metal nanostructured surfaces. The droplet reaction method has recently been employed to fabricate large-scale microring patterns of silver (Ag) nanostructures on rigid substrates, which enables sensitive detection within the ring area. However, these rigid substrates present limitations for direct on-site detection of analyte residues on irregular sample surfaces. There is a need to develop soft and flexible SERS substrates that can intimately conform to arbitrary surfaces. In this study, we presented a SERS substrate using flexible and adhesive tape as the supporting material. This SERS tape was fabricated by repeatedly transferring presynthesized Ag nanostructures from a rigid substrate to the tape. For a model compound adenine, our SERS tape exhibited a good linear response from 5 × 10-4 M to 5 × 10-5 M with a low limit of detection (LOD) of 5 × 10-7 M and displayed a SERS enhancement factor (EF) of 3.2 × 105. The relative standard deviation (RSD) of SERS intensity achieved was as low as 1.93%, indicating its outstanding uniformity. The as-prepared SERS tape was used for in situ detection of pesticide residue on an apple surface and dye residue on human hair. Leveraging the large surface area of Ag nanostructure patterns from the droplet reaction, the developed SERS tape demonstrates excellent performance in terms of sensitivity and uniformity. The successful detection of analyte residues on arbitrary surfaces of apple and human hair highlights the potential of this flexible SERS tape for real-world applications across various industries for enhanced diagnostic accuracy.

Research Status in the Use of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) to Detect Pesticide Residues in Foods and Plant-Derived Chinese Herbal Medicines

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technology has unique advantages in the rapid detection of pesticides in plant-derived foods, leading to reduced detection limits and increased accuracy. Plant-derived Chinese herbal medicines have similar sources to plant-derived foods; however, due to the rough surfaces and complex compositions of herbal medicines, the detection of pesticide residues in this context continues to rely heavily on traditional methods, which are time consuming and laborious and are unable to meet market demands for portability. The application of flexible nanomaterials and SERS technology in this realm would allow rapid and accurate detection in a portable format. Therefore, in this review, we summarize the underlying principles and characteristics of SERS technology, with particular focus on applications of SERS for the analysis of pesticide residues in agricultural products. This paper summarizes recent research progress in the field from three main directions: sample pretreatment, SERS substrates, and data processing. The prospects and limitations of SERS technology are also discussed, in order to provide theoretical support for rapid detection of pesticide residues in Chinese herbal medicines.