The Nanostructures and Applied Spectroscopy research group at the HUN-REN Wigner Research Center for Physics, led by Miklós Veres, has developed a new method that uses Raman spectroscopy to detect minute DNA errors with high precision, the Hungarian Research Network announced on its website. These small variations often play a role in the development of serious diseases such as cancer. The results were published in the scientific journal Biosensors and Bioelectronics.
DNA, our genetic material, fundamentally determines how the body functions. However, sometimes a single “letter” (nucleotide) in the DNA changes. This is called a single-nucleotide polymorphism or variant (SNP or SNV). Although this change is extremely small, it can still contribute to serious diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
Detecting these kinds of defects is extremely challenging—like finding a single typo in a library full of books. Yet it is very important, because identifying them can support early diagnosis and disease prevention.
Researchers at the HUN-REN Wigner Center used Raman spectroscopy for this purpose. Raman spectroscopy is a technique that identifies molecules using light. Every molecule has a unique “vibrational fingerprint” that allows it to be recognized.
In biological samples, however, this method has been difficult to apply because the signals are weak and often overlap. The researchers solved this problem with a novel approach: they attached a special chemical tag—an alkyne group—to the DNA. This produces a strong, clearly identifiable signal that does not interfere with the DNA’s natural function, while also allowing individual nucleotides to be distinguished.
Experiments showed that Raman spectroscopy can be used not only to detect DNA strand interactions, but also to identify a nucleotide at a specific position. The method was tested on a well-known cancer-related genetic mutation, the BRAF V600E mutation, which occurs in melanoma, for instance. The reproducible measurements clearly distinguished healthy DNA from the mutated (cancer-associated) form.
At present, the method still requires relatively large sample amounts, which limits its clinical use. However, the researchers have outlined several directions for further development, including signal enhancement (for instance, through surface-enhanced Raman scattering), DNA amplification, and the use of multiple labels at once so that several mutations can be analyzed simultaneously.
In the long term, this approach could contribute to earlier cancer detection, identifying genetic disease risks, and developing more personalized treatments.
The research involved scientists from the Institute of Solid State Physics and Optics at the HUN-REN Wigner Research Centre for Physics—Miklós Veres, Román Holomb, László Himics, and Tamás Váczi—in collaboration with researchers from the University of Birmingham, including the groups of Professors James H. R. Tucker and Ferenc Mueller. The work was carried out within a European Innovation Council project.
Via hun-ren.hu, Featured image: Pixabay
