Raman spectroscopic fingerprinting for the identification and quantitative analysis of sports doping β - agonists based on gold nanopolyhedra

Beta - stimulant, that is, β - adrenergic stimulant, also known as β - agonists, is bioactive catecholamine compounds naturally produced in animals' adrenal medulla glands that induce relaxation in asthmatic airway smooth muscles upon inhalation while also temporarily boosting athletic alertness and alleviating fatigue. However, their potential for dependency poses health risks including unnoticed exacerbation leading to severe illness or fatality prompting their inclusion on WADA's prohibited substances list. Surface - enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) offers a rapid, sensitive, and label - free means for identifying characteristic peaks associated with β - agonist compounds. In our investigation, the utilization of seed - mediated synthesis technique facilitated production of gold polyhedral substrates serving as highly sensitive biosensors for detecting β - agonist presence. The unique geometry of these particles generates enhanced SERS signals due to their multiple corners, resulting low detection limits (9.33 × 10^-7, 6.28 × 10^-7, and 6.19 × 10^-7 g·mL^-1 for salbutamol, clenbuterol and higenamine respectively), with promising prospects for improving overall sensitivity in β - agonists detection.