Novel PSMA-Coated On-Off-On Fluorescent Chemosensor Based on Organic Dots with AIEgens for Detection of Copper (II), Iron (III) and Cysteine

Abstract

Herein, a novel on-off-on fluorescent chemosensor for copper (II) ion (Cu2+), iron (III) ion (Fe3+) and cysteine is developed simply by the nano-precipitation method. The prepared organic dots with AIEgens (AIE dots) are advantageous over other metal ions in detecting Cu2+, Fe3+ with high selectivity and sensitivity by forming agglomerations (on-off). The agglomerations formed by AIE dots and Cu2+ redistributed and the fluorescence was obviously recovered in the presence of cysteine (off-on). This sensor has a wide linear range for Cu2+, Fe3+ and cysteine. The fluorescent detection limits of AIE dots are calculated to be 107 nM for Cu2+, 120 nM for Fe3+ and 78 nM for cysteine, respectively. These results indicate that the AIE dots can be used as a potential probe for Cu2+, Fe3+ and cysteine detection.

Aggregation-Induced Emission-Active Nanostructures: Beyond Biomedical Applications

“…The sensing of metal cations with AIE nanomaterials was also demonstrated by Zhang and Shuang et al . and Zhou and Zhang et al For the former, GSH-protected Cu NCs were prepared for the detection of Al 3+ ions via a turn-on of orange emission at 610 nm, attributed to electrostatic attraction between carboxylate groups of GSH and Al 3+ ions and Al···Al metallophilic interactions bringing the NCs closer together . The LOD was determined to be 33 nM.…”

“…The LOD was determined to be 33 nM. For the latter work, fluorescence of AIE organic dots prepared from the reprecipitation of distyrylanthracene and poly­(styrene maleic anhydride) was found to be selectively quenched in the presence of Cu 2+ and Fe 3+ because of chelation of the cations with the carboxyl groups of the AIE dots . Interestingly, the fluorescence can be recovered by addition of cysteine, which competitively coordinates the metal cations.…”

Recent advances in aggregation-induced emission (AIE)-based chemosensors for the detection of organic small molecules

“…Their fluorescence is recovered when Cys forms a more stable coordination complex with Cu 2+ , leading to redissolution of the aggregates and release of the fluorophores. A25 can detect Cys, Cu 2+ and Fe 3+ , with an LOD of 78 nM for Cys, 77 and likewise, A26 is able to detect Cys and Cu 2+ with an LOD of 0.1 μM for Cys. 101 In the case of A27 and A28 , these two chemosensors involve an additional metal for the sensing mechanism.…”

A Poly(carbazole-alt-triazole) with Thiabendazole Side Groups as an “On-Off-On” Fluorescent Probe for Detection of Cu(II) Ion and Cysteine

“…According to previous reports, Cys can combine with speci c metal ions such as Ag + considering the strong coordination ability of thiols with speci c metal ions such as Cu 2+ and Ag + , [44,45]because thiol have a strong interaction with metal ions and form the M z+ -S (M z+ is Cu 2+ and Ag + ) bond. Therefore, bio thiols could eliminate the coupling effect between M z+ and PCZBTA-TBZ and recover the uorescence of PCZBTA-TBZ in this system.…”