Special Issue: Fluorescent Molecular Probes and Fluorescence‐Based Chemical Sensing

Abstract

The topic of fluorescence-based chemical sensing relies on a broad range of fundamental chemical phenomena, and has far-reaching applications in diverse research areas including environmental chemistry, medical imaging, and national security. This field requires an interested researcher to understand underlying chemical phenomena in supramolecular chemistry and non-covalent interactions, and to use that understanding to develop new fluorescent probes with improved properties, to demonstrate how new and old probes can be used in high-impact situations, and to continuously work to meet unmet challenges in chemical detection. This topic has been relevant for decades, and recent current events highlight its continued relevance. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic highlights a need for rapid, sensitive, and selective sensing of the virus in indoor settings, to limit the spread of the virus; in biological fluids, to detect individuals' antibody levels and concomitant immunity; and in a variety of other scenarios. In another example, the 2021 oil spill in the Mediterranean Sea highlights a need for improved sensing of oil spills, particularly before the pollutants reach land; for monitoring of the air, water, and sediment on affected coastlines, to determine the safety of these coastlines for residents and visitors; and for detection of pollutants and pollutant degradation products in aquatic species, both for determining food safety of these species and for monitoring the overall health of the ecosystem. To that end, we are pleased to present this special issue of the Israel Journal of Chemistry, on the important and timely topic of “Fluorescent Molecular Probes and Fluorescence-Based Chemical Sensing.” This issue includes both timely and comprehensive review articles as well as communications and articles reporting new research results. The articles focus on chemical sensors derived from spirolactam-rhodamine photoswitches (A. Lippert and co-workers); on the fluorescence-based sensing of phosphate-containing biomolecules (A. Nag and co-workers); on photo-triggered and photo-calibrated nitric oxide donors (Yang and co-workers); and on using fluorescence to understand and improve foldamer function (Fuller and co-workers). Additional new research reported herein focuses on ester-functionalized TCF-based fluorescent probes for bacterial detection (T. James and co-workers), on the development and application of a benzothiazole-phenothiazine based molecular probe (Govindaraju and co-workers), and on a method for the thionation of a phosphaquinolin-2-one scaffold, with applications in the synthesis of novel fluorescent probes (D. Johnson and co-workers). Work from both of our research groups is also included herein, with reports of the development of cyclodextrin-bimane complexes for iodine detection (M. Levine and co-workers) and of a new method for the fluorescent labelling of cell surface proteins on a solid support (D. Margulies and co-workers). Overall, we are pleased that the authors included in this special issue demonstrate strong geographic diversity, with locations in the United States, Europe, Israel, and Asia; strong gender diversity, with a significant percentage of female corresponding authors; and strong career diversity, with articles from assistant, associate, and full professors. We believe wholeheartedly that such diversity strongly enhances the scientific merit of this special issue and benefits the chemistry community as a whole. We hope that researchers in this community will refer to the articles included herein to advance their own research objectives and continue to solve unmet societal challenges in chemistry detection research. With best wishes for continued research progress,