Quantitative detection of dopamine in human serum with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of constrained vibrational mode

Dopamine (DA) is a crucial neurotransmitter involved in the hormonal, nervous, and vascular systems being considered as an index to diagnose neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. Herein, we demonstrate the quantitative sensing of DA using the peak shift in surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of 4-mercaptophenylboronic acid (4-MPBA), resulting from the concentration of DA. To enable the signal enhancement of Raman scattering, Ag nanostructure was built with one-step gas-flow sputtering. 4-MPBA was then introduced using vapor-based deposition, acting as a reporter molecule for bonding with DA. The gradual peak-shift from 1075.6 cm-1 to 1084.7 cm-1 was observed with the increasing concentration of DA from 1 pM to 100nM. The numerical simulation revealed that DA bonding induced a constrained vibrational mode corresponding to 1084.7 cm-1 instead of a C-S-coupled C-ring in-plane bending mode of 4-MPBA corresponding to 1075.6 cm-1. Proposed SERS sensors depicted reliable DA detection in human serum and good selectivity against other analytes, including glucose, creatinine, and uric acid.