Sensitive and specific detection of clinical bacteria via vancomycin-modified Fe 3 O 4 @Au nanoparticles and aptamer-functionalized SERS tags

for S. aureus and E. coli, respectively, and favorable linear relations were observed between the logarithm of bacterial concentration and the SERS intensity at the characteristic Raman peaks. The high specificity and potential clinical applications of the technique were also proven. Our method elucidated novel advances and potential applications in the field of multiple SERS detection of pathogens.