A new cascade reaction-based colorimetric and fluorescence “turn on” dual-function probe for cyanide and hydrazine detection

Abstract

Selective detection of cyanide (CN−) and hydrazine (N2H4) are highly desirable owing to the highly toxic properties of these species. We report herein a new cascade reaction-based colorimetric and fluorescence “turn on” dual-function probe (HBTM-HC) for CN− and N2H4 detection with long wavelength emission (620 nm) and a large Stokes shift (122 nm). In DMSO/H2O (3/7, v/v, PBS 10 mM, pH = 9.1) solution, HBTM-HC displays highly selective and sensitive detection of CN− and N2H4 with the assistance of masking agents (acetone was used to mask N2H4, and Fe2+ was used to mask CN−). The detection limits of HBTM-HC for CN− and N2H4 were calculated to be 1.38 × 10−6 M and 5.47 × 10−6 M, respectively. The sensing mechanisms for CN− and N2H4 were proved to undergo cascade reactions, which results in deprotection of levulinate group and releasing of compound HBTM. In addition, probe HBTM-HC has been successfully applied to fluorescence imaging of N2H4 in live MCF-7 cells, detect CN− in sprouting potatoes and apple seeds, and detect CN− and N2H4 in real water samples with high recovery rates (92.0%–104.5%) and small relative standard deviations (≤7.15%).