Rational Design of Carbohydrate Based Ultrasensitive SERS Probes for Biological Systems

ABSTRACT Surface‐Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) enhances Raman scattering peaks by amplifying the vibration mode of molecules on a metal surface. We report the synthesis of carbohydrate‐derived molecules tagged with azide, alkyne, and cyanide. These molecules have been created using established procedures, and their SERS activity has been investigated. Carbohydrates play a crucial role in biological processes and offer diverse molecular scaffolds for drug discovery. Therefore, these might be potential candidates as imaging probes in drug delivery systems. Raman shifts of the four compounds were analyzed to determine the most suitable molecule as a SERS reporter. The diyne‐conjugated carbohydrate derivative obtained through the Glaser coupling reaction exhibited the highest intensity in the Raman spectra. Using an MTT assay in the human breast cancer cell line SK‐BR‐3 , we found that diyne killed ∼40% of cells after 24‐hour treatment and could be a promising candidate for further cytotoxic analysis. The other three molecules were suitable as SERS imaging probes for drug delivery applications.