Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
8.7
5.1
Journals
Foods
Special Issues
Application of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy in Food Analysis and Quality...
share announcement

Application of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy in Food Analysis and Quality Control

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Analytical Methods".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 October 2025) | Viewed by 1381

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Zhengyong Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Management Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Nanjing 210023, China
Interests: food quality control; quality management engineering; quality detection and evaluation; machine learning; chemometrics; intelligent data processing; Raman spectroscopy; nanomaterials
Prof. Dr. Béla Kovács

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Agriculture, Food Science and Environmental Management Institute of Food Science, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
Interests: bio-chemistry; spectroscopy; ICP-MS; ICP-OES; food chemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Min Sha

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Management Science & Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance & Economics, Nanjing 210046, China
Interests: food science; instrument analysis; pattern recognition; computer science; rapid detection technology; quality evaluation technology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The application scenarios of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) in the field of food quality and safety control are increasing, covering quality risk substances such as pesticide and veterinary drug residues, preservatives, heavy metals, illegal additives, microplastics, pathogenic bacteria, biotoxins, allergens, and quality markers such as nutritional components. The main research hotspots include the quantitative analysis of food quality characteristic substances and the exploration of their change mechanisms, the revelation of intermolecular interactions, the preparation characterization and method improvement of SERS substrate materials, the improvement of functional detection technology, the development of functional integrated devices or combination technologies, the integration of spectroscopic technology and intelligent learning algorithms, the optimization of detection characterization and recognition algorithm parameters, simulation based on density functional theory, and many other aspects. In this context, we invite authors to contribute to this Special Issue with articles about the latest developments, challenges, and prospects of novel detection and analysis technologies, quality control methods, and potential applications in the field of food control based on SERS. This Special Issue will publish original research papers and review articles, with a focus on the novelty of recent research.

Dr. Zhengyong Zhang
Prof. Dr. Béla Kovács
Dr. Min Sha
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • SERS substrate preparation
  • integrated device
  • multi-technology integration
  • molecular detection technology
  • molecular interaction
  • spectral analysis
  • parameter optimization
  • modification approaches

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

21 pages, 3762 KB  
Article
Rapid Detection of Foodborne Pathogenic Bacteria in Beef Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy
by Huixin Zuo, Yingying Sun, Mingming Huang, Yuqi Liu, Yimin Zhang and Yanwei Mao
Foods 2025, 14(19), 3434; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14193434 - 7 Oct 2025
Viewed by 676
Abstract
Foodborne pathogenic bacteria in meat pose a serious threat to human health. Traditional detection methods for these bacteria are often time-consuming and labor-intensive. In this study, we applied surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) combined with portable Raman spectroscopy as a rapid and convenient detection [...] Read more.
Foodborne pathogenic bacteria in meat pose a serious threat to human health. Traditional detection methods for these bacteria are often time-consuming and labor-intensive. In this study, we applied surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) combined with portable Raman spectroscopy as a rapid and convenient detection technique. SERS is a sensitive and fast method that enhances light scattering on rough metal surfaces. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were used as SERS substrates to identify and analyze four pathogenic bacteria, including Escherichia coli (E. coli) O157:H7, Salmonella typhimurium (S. typhimurium), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), and Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes), in beef. We optimized the detection conditions of AgNPs and established the limit of detection (LOD) for these four pathogenic bacteria in both pure culture and beef samples. The LODs were as low as 4–23 CFU/mL in beef samples, indicating high detection sensitivity. Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) was used to analyze the SERS spectra, yielding an accuracy of 91.7–97.3%. This study not only provides a rapid and portable detection method for pathogenic bacteria in beef but also overcomes the limitations of traditional methods that are often time-consuming and not suitable for on-site detection. However, the current study is limited to the detection of the four specific pathogenic bacteria, and further research is needed to expand the range of detectable pathogens and to improve the robustness of the detection models for more complex meat samples. Overall, this research demonstrates the potential of SERS combined with portable Raman spectroscopy as a powerful tool for the rapid detection of pathogenic bacteria in meat products, which could significantly enhance food safety monitoring and control. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy in Food Analysis and Quality Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

18 pages, 814 KB  
Review
Advances in the Application of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for Quality Control of Cereal Foods
by Pan Meng, Min Sha and Zhengyong Zhang
Foods 2025, 14(20), 3551; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14203551 - 18 Oct 2025
Viewed by 438
Abstract
Cereal foods occupy a central position in the global food consumption structure. Staple foods such as wheat, rice, and corn provide essential nutrients like carbohydrates and proteins for billions of people. Long-term intake of these foods can reduce the risk of cardiovascular and [...] Read more.
Cereal foods occupy a central position in the global food consumption structure. Staple foods such as wheat, rice, and corn provide essential nutrients like carbohydrates and proteins for billions of people. Long-term intake of these foods can reduce the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. However, the development of modern agriculture has caused some quality and safety issues such as pesticide residues, mycotoxin contamination, heavy metal residues, and illegal additives in the production, processing, and storage of cereal foods. Traditional detection techniques such as chromatography and mass spectroscopy have limitations including time-consuming procedures and high costs. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), with advantages of non-complex pretreatment, rapid detection, and high sensitivity, can accurately detect factors affecting cereal quality. This paper reviews the principles and substrate types of SERS first. Secondly, it systematically summarizes the research progress in the applications of SERS technology in cereal quality control from multiple aspects, including the detection of microbial contamination, pesticide residues, and heavy metal residues. Finally, it provides an outlook on SERS technology. SERS is expected to further improve the accuracy and efficiency of quality control for cereal foods through the development of new substrates, combination with other detection technologies, and intelligent data analysis methods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy in Food Analysis and Quality Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop