Líffræðifélag Íslands - biologia.is
Líffræðiráðstefnan 2017

Erindi/veggspjald / Talk/poster V57

Mesenchymal stem cells culture on novel silicon substrates with gold nanoislands for SERS measurements

Höfundar / Authors: Adrianna Milewska (1,2,3); Kristján Leósson (1,2); Ólafur Eysteinn Sigurjónsson (3)

Starfsvettvangur / Affiliations: 1. Innovation Center Iceland, 2. Háskóli Íslands, 3. Blóðbankinn

Kynnir / Presenter: Adrianna Milewska

The ability to detect molecules at low concentrations is desired for applications that range from basic science to healthcare. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates, which use random aggregates of metal nanoparticles (NPs) arrays, have recently evoked a lot of interest in sensing application due to its powerful ability in detecting rich information of molecules, even at their low concentrations. Thin layers containing metal nanostructures can achieve near-total power absorption at visible and near-infrared wavelengths. SERS enhancement relates primarily to the increase of local electric field intensity in small gaps between closely spaced nanoparticles.
Here, we indicate a surface with size of the gaps between gold NPs less than 5 nm, which we believe will be suitable for incorporation into microfluidic systems and for SERS studies of cells. Furthermore, we will attempt to use the developed SERS substrates to identify the degree of malignancy of human cells to improve the early diagnostic of cancer.
The main objective of this study was to evaluate if SERS substrates are suitable for cell culture. Mesenchymal stem cells were taken under evaluation. For further experiments, it was crucial to verify if stem cells can easily attach to the unusual surfaces. The results confirmed that cells can proliferate. Moreover, our findings highlight that there is no need to use any additional adhesion proteins, such as fibronectin, to induce cell attachment to the surface.