A rapid and ultrasensitive SERRS assay for histidine and tyrosine based on azo coupling

• A SERRS assay for histidine and tyrosine based on azo coupling is proposed.
• The method is highly sensitive, selective, simple and rapid.
• The application of the approach to complex samples is successfully conducted.

A simple and highly sensitive surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS)-based approach coupled with azo coupling reaction has been put forward for quantitative analysis of histidine and tyrosine. The SERRS-based assay is simple and rapid by mixing the azo reaction products with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) for measurements within 2 min. The limits of detection (LODs) of the method are as low as 4.33×10−11 and 8.80×10−11 M for histidine and tyrosine, respectively. Moreover, the SERRS fingerprint information specific to corresponding amino acids guarantees the selective detection for the target histidine and tyrosine. The results from serum indicated the potential application of the proposed approach into biological samples. Compared with the methods ever reported, the main advantages of this methodology are simpleness, rapidity without time-consuming separation or pretreatment steps, high sensitivity, selectivity and the potential for determination of other molecules containing imidazole or phenol groups.

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