Identification of cuproptosis-related long noncoding RNA signature for predicting prognosis and immunotherapy response in bladder cancer.

Bladder cancer (BC) is the most common malignant tumour of the urinary system and one of the leading causes of cancer-related death. Cuproptosis is a novel form of programmed cell death, and its mechanism in tumours remains unclear. This study aimed to establish the prognostic signatures of cuproptosis-related lncRNAs and determine their clinical prognostic value.

Gold nanocluster-based ratiometric fluorescent probe for biosensing of Hg ions in living organisms.

Gold nanoclusters (Au NCs) have become a new alternative to conventional fluorescent probes in biosensing and imaging. Herein, a gold nanocluster-based nanocomplex displaying single-excitation and dual-emission fluorescence property was fabricated by the conjugation of red-emitting glutathione-protected gold nanoclusters (Au-GSH NCs) and green-emitting fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) molecules. The inorganic-organic nanocomplex possesses good ratiometric fluorescence sensing ability with one emission peak showing a sensitive fluorescence response towards Hg ions and the other acting as the internal reference.

Tracking structural changes of protein residues by two-dimensional correlation surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.

In-situ tracking structural changes of protein residues was developed by two-dimensional correlation surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (2DC-SERS). The change order of SERS fingerprints during artificial nitrification of edible bird's nest (EBN) was interpreted as the structural changes of amino acid residues. It inherently realizes reliable recognition of natural EBN and artificially dyed fakes.

Highly luminescent gold nanocluster assemblies for bioimaging in living organisms.

Fluorescent gold nanoclusters are promising nanomaterials for biomedical applications but confronted with low emission efficiency and poor surface functionality. Herein, three kinds of highly luminescent and functionalized gold nanocluster nano-assembled structures were fabricated by poly--arginine surface engineering for luminescence improvement. The assembly is employed for imaging the glutathione molecule in cells and living organisms with low background and high sensitivity.

Surface motif sensitivity of dual emissive gold nanoclusters for robust ratiometric intracellular imaging.

Here, we report novel dual-emissive gold nanoclusters (d-Au NCs) that have two distinctive emissions (420 and 630 nm) under a single wavelength excitation. The two-stage formation mechanism evidences their sensitive response to valine and trivalent chromium ions (Cr) in completely different spectral ratiometric modes in living cells with high contrast to successfully avoid signal fluctuations.

Mirrorlike Plasmonic Capsules for Online Microfluidic Raman Analysis of Drug in Human Saliva and Urine.

Plasmonic capsules are emerging for novel applications in biochemical sensing, tunable optics, targeted delivery, etc. Here, we develop an online mirrorlike plasmonic capsule microfluidic (PCM) system through citrate-capped Au nanoparticle (GNP) arrays on three-dimensional (3D) oil/water (O/W) two-liquid interface without any inducers or promoters. The PCM-based surface-enhanced Raman scattering (PCM-SERS) system realizes multisample, multiplex, and high-throughput analysis of targeted molecules in complex media by a portable Raman device.

Direct Discrimination of Edible Oil Type, Oxidation, and Adulteration by Liquid Interfacial Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy.

The quality and safety of edible oils is a momentous but formidable challenge, especially regarding identification of oil type, oxidation, and adulteration. Most conventional analytical methods have bottlenecks in sensitivity, specificity, accessibility, or reliability. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is promising as an unlabeled and ultrasensitive technique but limited by modification of inducers or surfactants on metal surfaces for oil analysis.

Cross-linking structure-induced strong blue emissive gold nanoclusters for intracellular sensing.

Fluorescent gold nanoclusters (Au NCs) are new emerging fluorescent nanomaterials with broad application prospects but limited by the complicated preparation, low quantum yield (QY) and poor biological applications. Here we develop a one pot etching approach for synthesizing fluorescent Au NCs by using the common citrate-capped gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) as the precursor and the poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimer as the etching and templating agent. The synthesis conditions are optimized and products are characterized in detail.

Halide-assisted activation of atomic hydrogen for photoreduction on two-liquid interfacial plasmonic arrays.

Here, we show a two-liquid interfacial 3D plasmonic array for SERS examination on direct photoreduction of p-nitrothiophenol (4-NTP) to p-aminothiophenol (4-ATP) without the need for traditional catalysts and reductants, revealing the mechanism of halide-assisted activation of atomic hydrogen and the balance between the enhancing effect from etching of the Ag surface and the weakening effect from the reduction of the 4-NTP molecules, which provides insights into the light-to-energy conversion schemes on noble metal surfaces.

Self-Healing Plasmonic Metal Liquid as a Quantitative Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Analyzer in Two-Liquid-Phase Systems.

Liquid-state interfacial plasmonic systems are emerging as an alternative for the quantitation and practicability of the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technique in analytical science, especially for complex liquid-phase systems. Here we show a general strategy for the three-dimensional (3D) self-assembly of gold nanoparticle (GNP) arrays on a spherical oil-water (O-W) interface, denoted as a plasmonic metal liquid (PML). The PML has excellent self-healing and shape-adaptive features; it can be transferred into containers of any shape; and it presents fast, quantitative, and multiplex SERS capability.

Liquid-state quantitative SERS analyzer on self-ordered metal liquid-like plasmonic arrays.

Liquid interfacial plasmonic platform is emerging for new sensors, catalysis, and tunable optical devices, but also promises an alternative for practical applications of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Here we show that vigorous mixing of chloroform with citrate-capped gold nanorod sols triggers the rapid self-assembly of three-dimensional plasmonic arrays at the chloroform/water (O/W) interface and produces a self-healing metal liquid-like brilliant golden droplet. The O phase itself generates stable SERS fingerprints and is a good homogeneous internal standard for quantitative analysis.

Conformational sensitivity of surface selection rules for quantitative Raman identification of small molecules in biofluids.

Biofluid analysis by surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is usually hindered by nonspecific interferences. It is challenging to drive targeted molecules towards sensitive areas with specific capture and quantitative recognition in complex biofluids. Herein, a highly specific and quantitative SERS analyzer for small molecule dopamine (DA) in serum is demonstrated on a portable Raman device by virtue of a transducer of mercaptophenylboronic acid (MPBA) and a site-directed decoration of plasmonic Ag dendrites on a superhydrophobic surface.

Organic Solvent as Internal Standards for Quantitative and High-Throughput Liquid Interfacial SERS Analysis in Complex Media.

Liquid-state interfacial nanoparticle arrays for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) promises a practical, substrate-free, and rapid analysis but faces a great challenge to develop a batch and uniform fabrication strategy with stable internal standards (IS) because of the difficulties in precisely locating both the IS tags and analytes in the same local structure under the harsh conditions of biphasic liquid interface. Here, we develop a fast batch preparation of self-ordered dense Au nanoparticle (GNP) arrays on cyclohexane/water biphasic interface in 96-well plates with the assist of acetone as the phase-crossing inducer. The acetone can extract the pesticide molecules via a simple dipping sample peels and can rapidly capture and locate the pesticide molecule into the plasmonic hotspots.