Hydrogen
sulfide (H2S) is a significant component of
various physiological processes, and it can also cause a negative
effect on foodstuffs. In this work, we designed and synthesized an
NIR fluorescent turn-on responding probe (DDM-H
2
S) with a large Stokes shift (190 nm)
for the detection of H2S. DDM-H
2
S exhibited high selectivity and sensitivity,
obvious color changes, and a fast response time for tracing H2S. When DDM-H
2
S reacted with H2S, the PET process was eliminated, and
the recovered ICT process and NIR fluorescence were observed. Moreover, DDM-H
2
S could image endogenous
and exogenous H2S in living HeLa cells and zebrafish. What
is more, the probe DDM-H
2
S could be deposited easily to test paper strips, which were
able to detect the H2S gas produced during food spoilage
(such as eggs, raw meat, and fishes) by the color of test paper strips
changing from pink to purple. Therefore, this work provides a promising
approach for monitoring H2S in complicated biological systems
and practical food samples.