Polymer-metal composites for sensitive detection of metabolites by mass spectrometry

Novel polymer-metal hybrids were designed for highly efficient detection of amino acids. We prepared polymer spheres through extension of Stöber method. The polymeric sphere surface was decorated by metal nanoparticles via in-solution redox reaction. Detection of standard samples showed the nanoshell had significant advantages, e.g. for amino acids. The sensitivity of hybrids for detection of leucine was confirmed using standard analyte solution with different concentrations and serum samples. Our work provided an efficient tool for leucine detection and contributed to mass spectrometry analysis of amino acids for clinical diagnostics.