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Updated: Sep 22, 2025
Rapid Nanoprobe Signal Enhancement by In Situ Gold Nanoparticle Synthesis
Published on: March 7, 2018
Au-Se bonded nanoprobe for prostate specific antigen detection in serum
Xiaonan Gao1, Tianrun Niu1, Qinghua Xia2
1College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Collaborative Innovation Center of Functionalized Probes for Chemical Imaging in Universities of Shandong, Key Laboratory of Molecular and Nano Probes, Ministry of Education, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Clean Production of Fine Chemicals, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, 250014, PR China.
This study introduces a new nanoprobe for detecting prostate specific antigen (PSA). This innovative tool offers accurate early prostate cancer diagnosis and monitoring through enhanced serum analysis.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Nanotechnology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Prostate specific antigen (PSA) is a crucial biomarker for early prostate cancer diagnosis, treatment monitoring, and recurrence detection.
- Accurate and sensitive detection of PSA in serum is vital for effective prostate cancer management.
- Current detection methods may face challenges with sensitivity, specificity, or interference from other serum proteins.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and construct a novel nanoprobe for the specific and sensitive detection of PSA in human serum.
- To develop a detection method with improved anti-interference capabilities compared to existing techniques.
- To provide a new tool with potential clinical significance for PSA detection.
Main Methods:
- A nanoprobe was engineered using gold nanoparticles functionalized with PSA-cleavable peptide chains, a fluorescent dye, and selenol.
- Prostate specific antigen (PSA) cleavage of the peptide chains triggers a Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) effect, leading to fluorescence recovery.
- The nanoprobe's performance was evaluated for PSA detection in serum, assessing its sensitivity and specificity.
Main Results:
- The developed Au-Se bonded nanoprobe demonstrated specific detection of PSA.
- Fluorescence quenching due to FRET was effectively recovered upon PSA-mediated cleavage of the peptide chains.
- The nanoprobe exhibited a detection range of 1-40 ng/mL for PSA in serum with significant anti-interference ability against other proteins.
Conclusions:
- The novel Au-Se bonded nanoprobe provides a sensitive and specific method for detecting PSA in serum.
- This approach offers a promising new tool for the early diagnosis and clinical management of prostate cancer.
- The nanoprobe's robust anti-interference properties enhance its potential for reliable clinical application.
