SERS-based immunocapture and detection of pathogenic bacteria using a boronic acid-functionalized polydopamine-coated Au@Ag nanoprobe

A surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-based immunocapture nanoprobe is described for the detection of pathogenic bacteria. The probe uses boronic acid-functionalized polydopamine-coated Au@Ag nanoparticles as an advanced SERS nanotag. Modified magnetic IgG@Fe3O4 nanoparticles are used for magnetic separation. Au@Ag@PDA nanoparticles, where PDA stands for polydopamine, were functionalized with boronic acid to bind to pathogenic bacteria and induce signal amplification. The Raman signal is amplified 108 times when the SERS tag binds the surface of bacteria. The SERS spectra exhibit fingerprint-like patterns that enable bacterial classification. The results of principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) of the spectral regions were compared. The bacterial surface protein and glycan signals (1300–1450 cm−1) were the best regions for bacterial classification. Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Klebsiella pneumonia were successfully classified by this method. The lowest detection limit was 10 colonies/mL (CFU·mL). The assay can be completed within 30 min. Conceivably, this method may be extended to the quantitative detection or classification of bacteria under various other conditions.