Rational Design of a Bisphenol A Aptamer Selective Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Nanoprobe

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) optical nanoprobes offer a number of advantages for ultrasensitive analyte detection. These functionalized colloidal nanoparticles are a multifunctional assay component. providing a platform for conjugation to spectral tags, stabilizing polymers, and biorecognition elements such as aptamers or antibodies. We demonstrate the design and characterization of a SERS-active nanoprobe and investigate the nanoparticles’ biorecognition capabilities for use in a competitive binding assay. Specifically, the nanoprobe is designed for the quantification of bisphenol A (BPA) levels in the blood after human exposure to the toxin in food and beverage plastic packaging. The nanoprobes demonstrated specific affinity to a BPA aptamer with a dissociation constant K_d of 54 nM, and provided a dose-dependent SERS spectra with a limit of detection of 3 nM. Our conjugation approach shows the versatility of colloidal nanoparticles in assay development, acting as detectable spectral tagging elements and biologically active ligands concurrently.