Abstract
Developing effective methods for the instant detection of Cu2+ and S2− is highly desired in the biological and environmental fields. Herein, a novel fluorescent nanoprobe was elaborately designed and synthesized by grafting a phenanthroline derivative onto the surface of carbon dots (CDs). The obtained functionalized CDs (FCDs) exhibited blue fluorescence (FL) with excellent photostability and possessed a mean diameter around 4 nm. Cu2+ can be selectively captured by the phenanthroline group of FCDs to generate an absorptive complex in situ, leading to obvious quenching of the FCDs’ FL signal through an inner filter effect. Furthermore, the FL of the FCD–Cu2+ can be effectively recovered by S2− anions due to the release of FCDs from the FCD–Cu2+ complex owing to the formation of stable CuS (Ksp = 1.27 × 10−36) between S2− and Cu2+. The detection limits of the FCDs were determined to be 40.1 nM and 88.9 nM for Cu2+ and S2−, respectively. Moreover, this nanoprobe can also be used for the imaging of intracellular Cu2+ and S2−, which shows strong application prospects in the field of biology.
Highlights
Copper ion (Cu2+) and sulfide anion (S2−) have attracted increasing attention in recent years owing to their vital roles in various pathological/physiological processes and their being highly toxic to the environment and human health [1,2]
For the FL detection of Cu2+, different amounts of Cu2+ (0–50 μM) were added into functionalized CDs (FCDs) dispersed in pH 7.4 HEPES buffered water
PPDA can be grafted onto the sur4faocfe11 oPfPotDfhAePP.pSDriesActoi.nnSedeCclyoD,nasdPdlyPu,DeaAtFoPiwPgthDuietrAhere2awa. pcSitchtihhoeennamabpnaethtithcewrndoeaileaningntrehtahrmgoerlooainufmetphingehoraposrguerapponauhrepaaxtsicooefanlntlhefoneerxtCFcaCeDffilDslnesani.tntydafftofhrineCictuay2r+fbooarxnCydluhg2+arosaunbpdeeohnfas subceceAnssssfduelclmcyeoassnpfsputllrilaeytdeadipnpintlhieFedisgeiunlertechtSiev1se,etrlheceotUigvnVei-rtvieoicsnoagobnfsiCotiruop2n+tiooifnnCasupE2e+uci-tnMruaOmEFuo[-2fM6th]O.eFp[r2i6s]t.ine carbon dots (CDs) exhibited a peak at around 346 nm, while its FL spectra (Figure S2) show a typical excitation-dependent property, demonstrating the synthesis of the desirable CDs [28]
Summary
Copper ion (Cu2+) and sulfide anion (S2−) have attracted increasing attention in recent years owing to their vital roles in various pathological/physiological processes and their being highly toxic to the environment and human health [1,2]. Many methods have been developed for the detection of Cu2+ and S2−, including electrochemical methods [8,9], inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy [10,11], fluorescence (FL) spectrometry [12,13,14], and others. Among those analytical methods, combining FL spectrometry with specific fluorescent sensors has become a promising way to detect Cu2+ and S2− beNcaanoumsaeteorifalists20n18o,n8-, ixnFvOaRsiPvEeE,ReRcoEnVoIEmWic, real-time, highly selective, and sensitive properties.
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