An enzymatic reaction-based SERS saliva analysis microporous array chip for chiral differentiation and high-throughput detection of D-amino acids

A Raman-active boronate modified surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) microporous array chip based on the enzymatic reaction was constructed for reliable, sensitive, and quantitative monitoring of D-Proline (D-Pro) and D-Alanine (D-Ala) in saliva. Initially, 3-mercaptophenylboronic acid (3-MPBA) was bonded to Au-coated Si nanocrown arrays (Au/SiNCA) via Au–S bonding. Following this, H 2 O 2 obtained from D-amino acid oxidase (DAAO)-specific catalyzed D-amino acids (D-AAs) further reduced 3-MPBA to 3-hydroxythiophenol (3-HTP) with a new Raman peak at 882 cm −1 . Meanwhile, the original characteristic peak at 998 cm −1 remained unchanged. Therefore, the I 882 /I 998 ratio increased with increasing content of D-AAs in the sample to be tested, allowing D-AAs to be quantitatively detected. The Au/SiNCA with large-area periodic crown structure prepared provided numerous, uniform “hot spots,” and the microporous array chip with 16 detection units was employed as the platform for SERS analysis, realizing high-throughput, high sensitivity, high specificity and high-reliability quantitative detection of D-AAs (D-Pro and D-Ala). The limits of detection (LOD) were down to 10.1 µM and 13.7 µM throughout the linear range of 20–500 µM. The good results of the saliva detection suggested that this SERS sensor could rapidly differentiate between early-stage gastric cancer patients and healthy individuals. Graphical Abstract