Development of Smart Lanthanide-Luminescence Probes for Biomedical Raman Spectroscopy and Imaging

Lanthanide complexes possess unique luminescence properties making them useful in spectroscopic analyses and imaging. Recently, a Raman spectroscopic technique, Raman optical activity spectrometer was found helpful in studying lanthanide optical activity. The detection scheme is particularly useful for europium(III) compounds as it exhibits narrow spectral lines that fit into the instrument’s spectroscopic window using a green laser. The project aims to develop lanthanide probes with specific binding and spectroscopic properties suitable for biomedical analysis and chemical imaging, by combining lanthanide-luminescence and Raman microscopy. In the long term, such ‘smart’ lanthanide probes will become beneficial in biological research and medical diagnostics.