New system can detect cocaine at low concentrations
The method combines the use of gated mesoporous silica nanoparticle s and SERS spectroscopy, a signal amplification system that uses gold nanoparticles to detect very low concentrations of the substances being analysed. In the lab, it allowed them to reach nanomolar detection levels for cocaine and 30 copies of genomic DNA/μL in the case of mycoplasma. Developed by researchers at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), CICbiomaGUNE and CIBER-BBN, of the Carlos III Health Institute, the study has been published in Chemistry-A European Journal with the title, "Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering and Gated Materials for Sensing Applications." In it they outline the need to detect these two substances: "Cocaine is an alkaloid obtained from the leaves of the coca plant, which is extensively used in developed countries as an illegal recreational drug. Although cocaine production and distribution are restricted and illegal in most contexts, it is a powerful nervous...