pH-assisted ratiometric surface-enhanced Raman scattering for reliable creatinine quantification in serum

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Abnormal serum creatinine levels indicate kidney dysfunction, necessitating accurate monitoring for early diagnosis.
• Current creatine kinase-based methods suffer from matrix interference, limiting clinical reliability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a precise and reliable method for creatinine detection in biological samples.
• To overcome the limitations of existing commercial creatinine detection kits.

Main Methods:

• Synthesized core-shell nanoparticles (Au@MPA@Ag NPs) using 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) as an internal standard.
• Employed a pH-assisted ratiometric surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technique optimized at pH 9.
• Utilized the internal standard-calibrated Raman intensity for quantitative analysis.

Main Results:

• Achieved a limit of detection of 3.3 μM for creatinine.
• Demonstrated a strong linear correlation between Raman intensity and creatinine concentration.
• Validated the method in human serum samples with 98-107% recovery rates, comparable to commercial kits.

Conclusions:

• The developed pH-assisted ratiometric SERS method offers a clinically accurate and reliable approach for creatinine monitoring.
• This technique shows significant potential for point-of-care diagnostic applications.
• The use of core-shell nanoparticles and an internal standard enhances detection precision and reproducibility.