Methods in the detection of microorganisms by Raman spectroscopy

Abstract:

Rapid and accurate identification and characterization of microorganisms is essential for the research in environmental science, food quality, and medical diagnostics. Raman spectroscopy has been shown to be a new technique that enables rapid microbial diagnosis, providing microbial fingerprinting information while enabling rapid, non-labeled, non-invasive, and sensitive detection of microorganisms at the single-cell level in both solid and liquid environments. This paper briefly introduced the basic concepts and principles of Raman spectroscopy and focused on a review of the sample handling methods and spectral data processing methods in the application of Raman spectroscopy for microbial detection. Besides, this paper outlined the application of Raman spectroscopy in bacteria, viruses, and fungi, among which the application of Raman in rapid bacterial identification and antibiotic drug sensitivity detection was outlined separately. Finally, this paper described the challenges and prospects of Raman spectroscopy in microbial detection.