Issue 11, 2016

Ultrahigh affinity Raman probe for targeted live cell imaging of prostate cancer

Abstract

Precise visualization of tumor margins with characterization of microscopic tumor invasion are unmet needs in prostate oncology that demand approaches with high sensitivity and specificity. To address those needs we report surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) based optical imaging for prostate cancer using a combination of live cell Raman microscopy, optimally engineered SERS tags and a urea-based small-molecule inhibitor of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) as a targeting moiety. We develop gold nanostar based SERS agents that offer ultrahigh binding affinity to PSMA with nearly four orders of magnitude lower IC50 values in relation to existing clinical imaging agents. This combination enables selective recognition of prostate cancer cells, and facilitates quantitative and photostable Raman measurements. Using Raman microscopy to analyze phenotypically similar prostate cancer cell lines differing only in PSMA expression, we demonstrate facile, site-selective recognition using as low as 20 pM of the SERS agent for imaging, opening the door for spectroscopic detection of prostate and other PSMA-expressing tumors in vivo.

Graphical abstract: Ultrahigh affinity Raman probe for targeted live cell imaging of prostate cancer

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
20 Apr 2016
Accepted
14 Jul 2016
First published
15 Jul 2016
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2016,7, 6779-6785

Author version available

Ultrahigh affinity Raman probe for targeted live cell imaging of prostate cancer

M. Li, S. R. Banerjee, C. Zheng, M. G. Pomper and I. Barman, Chem. Sci., 2016, 7, 6779 DOI: 10.1039/C6SC01739H

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements