Thin layer chromatography in tandem with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (TLC-SERS) has demonstrated tremendous potentials as a new analytical chemistry tool to detect a wide range of substances ...from real-world samples. However, it still faces significant challenges of multiplex sensing from complex mixtures due to the imperfect separation by TLC and the resulting interference of SERS detection. In this article, we propose a multiplex sensing method of complex mixtures by machine vision analysis of the scanning image of the TLC-SERS results. Briefly, various pure substances in solution and the complex mixture solution are separated by TLC followed by one-dimensional SERS scanning of the entire TLC plate, which generates TLC-SERS images of all target substances along the chromatography path. After that, a machine vision method is employed to extract the template images from the TLC-SERS images of pure substance solutions. Finally, we apply a feature point matching strategy based on the Winner-take-all principle, which matches the template image of each pure substance with the mixture image to confirm the existence and derive the position of each target substance in the TLC plate, respectively. Our experimental results based on the mixture solution of five different substances show that the proposed machine vision analysis is highly selective, sensitive and does not require artificial analysis of the SERS spectra. Therefore, we envision that the proposed machine vision analysis of the TLC-SERS imaging is an objective, accurate, and efficient method for multiplex sensing of trace level of target substances from complex mixtures.
•A multiplex sensing method of complex mixtures by machine vision analysis of the scanning image of the TLC-SERS results.•Holistic analysis by the kernel algorithm based on the image matching between the extracted template image from pure substances and the mixture TLC-SERS image.•Excellent sensitivity down to 1 ppm for five mixed chemical substances and high specificity based on negative control testing.
A hallmark of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an exuberant stroma comprised of diverse cell types that enable or suppress tumor progression. Here, we explored the role of oncogenic KRAS in ...protumorigenic signaling interactions between cancer cells and host cells. We show that KRAS mutation (KRAS*) drives cell-autonomous expression of type I cytokine receptor complexes (IL2rγ-IL4rα and IL2rγ-IL13rα1) in cancer cells that in turn are capable of receiving cytokine growth signals (IL4 or IL13) provided by invading Th2 cells in the microenvironment. Early neoplastic lesions show close proximity of cancer cells harboring KRAS* and Th2 cells producing IL4 and IL13. Activated IL2rγ-IL4rα and IL2rγ-IL13rα1 receptors signal primarily via JAK1-STAT6. Integrated transcriptomic, chromatin occupancy, and metabolomic studies identified MYC as a direct target of activated STAT6 and that MYC drives glycolysis. Thus, paracrine signaling in the tumor microenvironment plays a key role in the KRAS*-driven metabolic reprogramming of PDAC. SIGNIFICANCE: Type II cytokines, secreted by Th2 cells in the tumor microenvironment, can stimulate cancer cell-intrinsic MYC transcriptional upregulation to drive glycolysis. This KRAS*-driven heterotypic signaling circuit in the early and advanced tumor microenvironment enables cooperative protumorigenic interactions, providing candidate therapeutic targets in the KRAS* pathway for this intractable disease.
Human colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major cause of cancer mortality and frequently harbors activating mutations in the
gene. To understand the role of oncogenic
in CRC, we engineered a mouse model of ...metastatic CRC that harbors an inducible oncogenic
allele (
) and conditional null alleles of
and
(iKAP). The iKAP model recapitulates tumor progression from adenoma through metastases. Whole-exome sequencing revealed that the
allele was heterogenous in primary tumors yet homogenous in metastases, a pattern consistent with activated
signaling being a driver of progression to metastasis. System-level and functional analyses revealed the TGF-β pathway as a key mediator of
-driven invasiveness. Genetic extinction of
resulted in specific elimination of the
subpopulation in primary and metastatic tumors, leading to apoptotic elimination of advanced invasive and metastatic disease
This faithful CRC model provides genetic evidence that
drives CRC invasion and maintenance of metastases.
By combining the large Purcell effect of photonic crystal nanocavity and the strong plasma dispersion effect of the transparent conductive oxides, ultra-compact silicon modulators with ...heterogeneously integrated indium-tin-oxide (ITO) can potentially achieve unprecedented energy efficiency. In this article, we report the first high-speed silicon nanocavity modulator driven by an ITO gate, achieving 1.94 GHz bandwidth. On-off-key modulation is measured up to 3 Gb/s with only 2 V voltage swing and 18.3 fJ/bit energy efficiency. In addition, we perform in-depth analysis of the energy efficiency and high frequency simulation of the nanocavity modulator, revealing the critical role played by the semiconductor conduction path and the overlapping factor between the accumulated free carriers and the cavity resonant mode. Based on our analysis, we propose a strategy to further improve the modulation bandwidth to 23.5 GHz by node-matched doping and reduce the energy consumption to the range of hundreds of atto-joule per bit.
•Portable TLC-SERS method was proposed for on-site sensing histamine.•The azo-derivatization process not only visualized histamine, but also improved the detection sensitivity.•The histamine in ...spoiled process of tuna was successfully monitored.
Food poisoning caused by histamine ingestion is one of the prevalent allergies associated with fish consumption in the world. Reliable detection of histamine from fish by a portable platform was of urgent importance to food safety. A portable technology for on-site monitoring of histamine in tuna was established through combined azo-derivatized thin-layer chromatography (TLC) with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy. The real tuna meat sample was directly applied onto the portable sensor for the separation of histamine and azo-derivatizing of histamine was reacted on the TLC plate. The colorless histamine was visualized by azo-derivatization after spraying Pauly reagent onto the diatomite TLC plate. The molecule information and concentration of the histamine was measured and calculated by SERS spectra. Diatomite TLC plate was capable of separating histamine with 1.32 × 10−7 M of Au colloid for the SERS enhancement. Accordingly, the limit of detection of histamine from mixture sample could achieve 2.8 × 10−4 ppm. These results indicated that the portable azo-derivatized TLC-SERS sensor not only visualizes the histamine but also improves the intensity of the Raman spectra. The azo-derivatized TLC-SERS sensor could be applied for rapid, convenient, and ultrasensitive point-of-care sensing of histamine in fish.
Silicon microring resonators (Si-MRRs) play essential roles in on-chip wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) systems due to their ultra-compact size and low energy consumption. However, the resonant ...wavelength of Si-MRRs is very sensitive to temperature fluctuations and fabrication process variation. Typically, each Si-MRR in the WDM system requires precise wavelength control by free carrier injection using PIN diodes or thermal heaters that consume high power. This work experimentally demonstrates gate-tuning on-chip WDM filters for the first time with large wavelength coverage for the entire channel spacing using a Si-MRR array driven by high mobility titanium-doped indium oxide (ITiO) gates. The integrated Si-MRRs achieve unprecedented wavelength tunability up to 589 pm/V, or V
L of 0.050 V cm with a high-quality factor of 5200. The on-chip WDM filters, which consist of four cascaded ITiO-driven Si-MRRs, can be continuously tuned across the 1543-1548 nm wavelength range by gate biases with near-zero power consumption.
Electron accumulation in transparent conductive oxides (TCOs), when driven by a gate voltage, is capable of inducing extremely strong electro-optic absorption at the telecommunication wavelength ...window due to the epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) effect and various waveguide modulators have been proposed in recent years. This paper conducts a comparative analysis of TCO modulators by reviewing several representative designs based on the uniform concentration accumulated carrier model and the classical continuous carrier distribution model. We also apply the quantum moment model to analyze the free carrier distribution of the TCO based metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitor for the first time, and reveal significantly different device physics compared with previous simulation models. The quantum moment model predicts a much higher driving voltage in order to turn the TCO materials into ENZ and a stronger modulation strength compared with the classical model. Especially, the requirement of the higher gate voltage brings a great challenge to the insulator layer as the electric field in the insulator is exceeding the breakdown strength, which raises the concern of reliability. In order to evaluate the accuracy of different models, we compare the simulation results with two of the most recent experimental papers and show that the quantum model has a better match in terms of the electro-absorption rate and the differential driving voltage. However, the quantum moment model still cannot explain some other experimental results, which may be induced by different modulation mechanisms.
Near‐field enhanced bifunctional plasmonic‐magnetic (PM) nanostructures consisting of silica nanotubes with embedded solid nanomagnets and uniformly dual‐surface‐coated plasmonic Ag nanoparticles ...(NPs) are rationally synthesized. The solid embedded sections of nanotubes provide single‐molecule sensitivity with an enhancement factor up to 7.2 × 109 for surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). More than 2× SERS enhancement is observed from the hollow section compared to the solid section of the same nanotube. The substantial SERS enhancement on the hollow section is attributed to the dual‐sided coating of Ag NPs as well as the near‐field optical coupling of Ag NPs across the nanotube walls. Experimentation and modeling are carried out to understand the dependence of SERS enhancement on the NP sizes, junctions, and the near field effects. By tuning the aspect ratio of the embedded nanomagnets, the magnetic anisotropy of nanotubes can be readily controlled to be parallel or vertical to the long directions for nano‐manipulation. Leveraging the bifunctionality, a nanotube is magnetically maneuvered to a single living mammalian cell amidst many and its membrane composition is analyzed via SERS spectroscopy.
Unique near‐field enhanced plasmonic‐magnetic bifunctional nanotubes are fabricated and their plasmonic properties are investigated by both experimentation and theoretical modeling. By leveraging the bifunctionality, a nanotube can be precisely transported to a single living Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell amidst many and its membrane chemistry (lipid and protein) is revealed with surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy.
Diatomaceous earth-otherwise called diatomite-is essentially composed of hydrated biosilica with periodic nanopores. Diatomite is derived from fossilized remains of diatom frustules and possesses ...photonic-crystal features. In this paper, diatomite simultaneously functions as the matrix of the chromatography plate and the substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), by which the photonic crystal-features could enhance the optical field intensity. The on-chip separation performance of the device was confirmed by separating and detecting industrial dye (Sudan I) in an artificial aqueous mixture containing 4-mercaptobenzoic acid (MBA), where concentrated plasmonic Au colloid was casted onto the analyte spot for SERS measurement. The plasmonic-photonic hybrid mode between the Au nanoparticles (NP) and the diatomite layer could supply nearly 10 times the increment of SERS signal (MBA) intensity compared to the common silica gel chromatography plate. Furthermore, this lab-on-a-chip photonic crystal device was employed for food safety sensing in real samples and successfully monitored histamine in salmon and tuna. This on-chip food sensor can be used as a cheap, robust, and portable sensing platform for monitoring for histamine or other harmful ingredients at trace levels in food products.
PDF
