Generating monomeric 5-coordinated microperoxidase-11 using carboxylic acid functionalized silver nanoparticles: A surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering analysis.

Microperoxidase-11 (MP-11), a heme undecapeptide obtained by proteolytic digestion of cytochrome c, resembles peroxidase enzyme when its heme center is 5-coordinated with a vacant sixth coordination site. However, MP-11 always tends to aggregate in both solution and on surface and eventually forms the 6-coordinated heme. Thus, the present study investigates the immobilization strategy of MP-11 on nanoparticle surface in order to generate monomeric 5-coordinated MP-11 and make them as an efficient biocatalyst. The powerful surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) technique is being employed to attain the detailed structural information of the catalytic site i.e., the heme center. The localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) tuned and 6-mercaptohexanoic acid (MHA) functionalized silver nanoparticles (Ag@MHA NPs) are used as Raman signal amplifier. The outcome of the SERRS study unambiguously portrays the existence of monomeric 5-coordinated MP-11 on Ag@MHA NPs surface. Here, Ag@MHA NPs plays a dual role of providing a platform to create monomeric 5-coordinated MP-11 and to load large number of MP-11 due to its high surface to volume ratio. Further, the electrostatic interaction between Ag@MHA NPs and MP-11 leads to instantaneous SERRS signal enhancement with a Raman enhancement factor (EFSERS) of 2.36×10(6). Langmuir adsorption isotherm has been employed for the adsorption of MP-11 on Ag@MHA NPs surface, which provides the real surface coverage (ΓS(*)) and equilibrium constant (K) value of 1.54nm and 5×10(11)M(-1). Furthermore, the peroxidase activity of MP-11 has been demonstrated through electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction.

Correction: Towards improved precision in the quantification of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factors: a renewed approach.

Correction for 'Towards improved precision in the quantification of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factors: a renewed approach' by Arumugam Sivanesan et al., Analyst, 2015, DOI:10.1039/c4an01778a

Towards improved precision in the quantification of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factors: a renewed approach.

This paper demonstrates a renewed procedure for the quantification of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factors with improved precision. The principle of this method relies on deducting the resonance Raman scattering (RRS) contribution from surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) to end up with the surface enhancement (SERS) effect alone. We employed 1,8,15,22-tetraaminophthalocyanato-cobalt(II) (4α-Co(II)TAPc), a resonance Raman- and electrochemically redox-active chromophore, as a probe molecule for RRS and SERRS experiments. The number of 4α-Co(II)TAPc molecules contributing to RRS and SERRS phenomena on plasmon inactive glassy carbon (GC) and plasmon active GC/Au surfaces, respectively, has been precisely estimated by cyclic voltammetry experiments. Furthermore, the SERS substrate enhancement factor (SSEF) quantified by our approach is compared with the traditionally employed methods. We also demonstrate that the present approach of SSEF quantification can be applied for any kind of different SERS substrates by choosing an appropriate laser line and probe molecule.

Plasmon-tuned silver colloids for SERRS analysis of methemoglobin with preserved nativity.

Optically tuned silver nanoparticles (AgNP's) functionalized with ω-mercaptoalkanoic acids are synthesized and used as a signal amplifier for the surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) study of heme cofactor in methemoglobin (metHb). Even though both mercaptopropionic acid (MPA)- and mercaptononanoic acid (MNA)-functionalized AgNP's exemplify vastly enhanced SERRS signal of metHb, MNA-AgNP's amplify the SERRS signal amid preservation of the nativity of the heme pocket, unlike MPA-AgNP's. The electrostatic interaction between MNA-AgNP's and metHb leads to instant signal enhancement with a Raman enhancement factor (EF(SERS)) of 4.2 × 10(3). Additionally, a Langmuir adsorption isotherm has been employed for the adsorption of metHb on the MNA-AgNP surface, which provides the real surface coverage and equilibrium constant (K) of metHb as 139 nM and 3.6 × 10(8) M(-1), respectively. The lowest detection limit of 10 nM for metHb has been demonstrated using MNA-AgNP's besides retaining the nativity of the heme pocket.

Complementary surface-enhanced resonance Raman spectroscopic biodetection of mixed protein solutions by chitosan- and silica-coated plasmon-tuned silver nanoparticles.

Silver nanoparticles with identical plasmonic properties but different surface functionalities are synthesized and tested as chemically selective surface-enhanced resonance Raman (SERR) amplifiers in a two-component protein solution. The surface plasmon resonances of the particles are tuned to 413 nm to match the molecular resonance of protein heme cofactors. Biocompatible functionalization of the nanoparticles with a thin film of chitosan yields selective SERR enhancement of the anionic protein cytochrome b(5), whereas functionalization with SiO(2) amplifies only the spectra of the cationic protein cytochrome c. As a result, subsequent addition of the two differently functionalized particles yields complementary information on the same mixed protein sample solution. Finally, the applicability of chitosan-coated Ag nanoparticles for protein separation was tested by in situ resonance Raman spectroscopy.