BCNO QDs and ROS synergistic oxidation effect on fluorescence enhancement sensing of tetracycline

Abstract

Tetracycline (Tc) is a versatile broad-spectrum antimicrobial drug against intestinal infections and widely used in breeding industry. However, the overuse of Tc will lead to bacterial resistance to antibiotics and residuals in food products, which seriously endanger human health. Therefore, it’s vitally important to develop a rapid, sensitive, and convenient method towards Tc detection. In this work, fluorescent boron carbon oxynitride quantum dots (BCNO QDs) were obtained by a hydrothermal method in 3% H2O2. The BCNO QDs possess a large stocks shift, and emit blue fluorescence with a quantum yield of 4.9 %. Under the synergistic catalytic effect of BCNO QDs and reactive oxygen species (ROS), Tc will be oxidized into oxidized Tc, showing a green fluorescence with 2 times enhancement than with single additive (BCNO QDs/ROS). Under optimal conditions, there is a good linearity response towards Tc detection ranging from 10 nM to 30 μM, with a detection limit of 5.95 nM. Consequently, the synergistic oxidation effect of BCNO QDs and H2O2 provides a useful approach for highly sensitive and selective Tc determination. The proposed approach reveals a novel “fluorescence enhancement” strategy for the Tc detection and broadens the application of BCNO QDs.