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Published on: March 25, 2019
A review of clinical use of surface-enhanced Raman scattering-based biosensing for glioma
Guohui Yang1, Kaizhi Zhang1, Weiqing Xu2
1China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Abstract:
Glioma is the most common malignant tumor of the nervous system in recent centuries, and the incidence rate of glioma is increasing year by year. Its invasive growth and malignant biological behaviors make it one of the most challenging malignant tumors. Maximizing the resection range (EOR) while minimizing the impact on normal brain tissue is crucial for patient prognosis. Changes in metabolites produced by tumor cells and their microenvironments might be important indicators. As a powerful spectroscopic technique, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has many advantages, including ultra-high sensitivity, high specificity, and non-invasive features, which allow SERS technology to be widely applied in biomedicine, especially in the differential diagnosis of malignant tumor tissues. This review first introduced the clinical use of responsive SERS probes. Next, the sensing mechanisms of microenvironment-responsive SERS probes were summarized. Finally, the biomedical applications of these responsive SERS probes were listed in four sections, detecting tumor boundaries due to the changes of pH-responsive SERS probes, SERS probes to guide tumor resection, SERS for liquid biopsy to achieve early diagnosis of tumors, and the application of free-label SERS technology to detect fresh glioma specimens. Finally, the challenges and prospects of responsive SERS detections were summarized for clinical use.
Insights
Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) probes offer a promising approach for detecting glioma. These responsive probes can help delineate tumor boundaries and guide surgical resection, improving patient outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Spectroscopy
- Oncology
Background:
- Glioma is a prevalent and challenging nervous system malignancy with increasing incidence.
- Optimizing glioma resection while preserving healthy brain tissue is critical for patient prognosis.
- Tumor microenvironment metabolites offer potential diagnostic and prognostic indicators.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the clinical applications of responsive surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) probes in glioma diagnosis and treatment.
- To summarize the sensing mechanisms of microenvironment-responsive SERS probes.
- To explore the use of SERS in detecting tumor boundaries, guiding resection, and enabling liquid biopsy for early glioma detection.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on responsive SERS probes for biomedical applications.
- Analysis of SERS sensing mechanisms related to microenvironmental changes (e.g., pH).
- Categorization of SERS applications in glioma: tumor boundary detection, surgical guidance, liquid biopsy, and fresh specimen analysis.
Main Results:
- Responsive SERS probes demonstrate high sensitivity and specificity for detecting malignant tumor tissues.
- pH-responsive SERS probes aid in identifying tumor boundaries.
- SERS facilitates intraoperative guidance for tumor resection and enables early tumor diagnosis via liquid biopsy.
- Label-free SERS technology shows potential for analyzing fresh glioma specimens.
Conclusions:
- Responsive SERS probes are valuable tools for advancing glioma diagnosis and surgical management.
- Further development and clinical validation of SERS technology are needed to overcome current challenges.
- SERS holds significant promise for improving patient outcomes in glioma care.
