Fluorescence Enhancement of Terminal Amine Assembled on Gold Nanoclusters and Its Application to Ratiometric Lysine Detection

Near-infrared fluorescent probe with large Stokes shift for specific detection of lysine

A new near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe CL based on coumarin- dicyanoisophorone was synthesized. Addition of Lys to probe CL solution in DMF/H2O (9:1, v/v) medium resulted in noticeable enhancement in the intensity of the fluorescence emission at 702 nm, accompanying distinct color change from yellow to pink. While addition of other amino acids and biothiols (Gly, Hcy, GSH, Glu, Val, Tyr, Arg, Trp, Lys, His, Leu, Phe, Asp and Met) did not bring about substantial changes in both fluorescence emission and color. The detection limit was calculated to be 0.51 μM. Job's plot test revealed that probe CL and Lys formed a complex of 1:1 stoichiometry. Probe CL showed high stability and could be used to recognize Lys in a wide pH range of 4.0-10.0. The sensing mechanism was proposed and verified by 1H NMR spectral measurement. The dual-modal fluorescence turn-on and colorimetric NIR probe with an extremely large Stokes shift of 280 nm may be utilized for highly specific and practical sensing of Lys.

Fluorescent Sensing of Glutathione and Related Bio-Applications

Glutathione (GSH), as the most abundant low-molecular-weight biological thiol, plays significant roles in vivo. Abnormal GSH levels have been demonstrated to be related to the dysfunction of specific physiological activities and certain kinds of diseases. Therefore, the sensing of GSH is emerging as a critical issue. Cancer, with typical high morbidity and mortality, remains one of the most serious diseases to threaten public health. As it is clear that much more concentrated GSH is present at tumor sites than at normal sites, the in vivo sensing of GSH offers an option for the early diagnosis of cancer. Moreover, by monitoring the amounts of GSH in specific microenvironments, effective diagnosis of ROS levels, neurological diseases, or even stroke has been developed as well. In this review, we focus on the fluorescent methodologies for GSH detection, since they can be conveniently applied in living systems. First, the fluorescent sensing methods are introduced. Then, the principles for fluorescent sensing of GSH are discussed. In addition, the GSH-sensing-related biological applications are reviewed. Finally, the future opportunities in in the areas of fluorescent GSH sensing-in particular, fluorescent GSH-sensing-prompted disease diagnosis-are addressed.

A New Pyrroloquinoline-Derivative-Based Fluorescent Probe for the Selective Detection and Cell Imaging of Lysine

In this paper, a new pyrroloquinoline-derivative-based fluorescent probe, PQP-1, was prepared for the selective detection of Lys in living cells and natural mineral water for drinking. PQP-1 exhibited high selectivity, low limit of detection, and a wide pH range. PQP-1 could be successfully applied for imaging Lys in living cells and in natural mineral water for drinking. We expect that PQP-1 will expand the detection reaction mechanism and the practical biological applications of Lys.

Ratiometric fluorescent sensing of ethanol based on copper nanoclusters with tunable dual emission

Copper nanoclusters (Cu NCs) have attracted a surge of interest in fluorescent sensors as their outstanding physicochemical and optical properties. However, most of the reports have focused on single-signal fluorescent sensors, which are susceptible to background interferences and affect accuracy of the results. Herein, we constructed a facile ratiometric fluorescent sensor for monitoring ethanol based on Cu NCs with tunable dual emission. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-modified Cu NCs were simply prepared in water, which exhibit ratiometric dual emission, including a strong green emission at 520 nm and a weak blue emission at 450 nm. The PVP-Cu NCs in water with strong green emission display monodisperse state due to the formation of hydration shell around Cu NCs. In ethanol where the hydration shell is destructed, Cu NCs tend to aggregate and show strong blue emission. This emission shift might attribute to the enhancement of Cu-Cu metallophilic interaction with the aggregation of Cu NCs, which induces the excited-state level increasing. Thus, a ratiometric fluorescent probe for ethanol based on the PVP-Cu NCs is fabricated, which possesses rapid response (<1 min), and realize full-range detection from 0 to 100%. In addition, this ratiometric probe is successfully applied to determine the alcohol strength of alcohol beverages, demonstrating the great potential in practical application.

Different fluorescence emitting copper nanoclusters protected by egg white and double-emission fluorescent probe for fast detection of ethanol

Green emitting copper nanoclusters (G-Cu NCs), yellow emitting Cu NCs (Y-Cu NCs), orange emitting Cu NCs (O-Cu NCs) and red emitting Cu NCs (R-Cu NCs) were prepared using chicken egg white as the stabilizer by changing the reaction conditions. This is a green, facile and cheap method to explore different color emitting CuNCs by the same precursor and stabilizers. The G-Cu NCs were employed for the detection of ethanol due to their aggregation induced emission enhancement (AIEE) effect. The fluorescence emission of Cu NCs at 526 nm under the excitation of 444 nm can be effectively enhanced in the presence of ethanol due to AIEE effect, thus realizing the quantitative determination of ethanol content in the range 5-60%. In addition, a visual dual-emission fluorescence probe with the combination of G-Cu NCs and silicon nanoparticles (Si NPs/G-Cu NCs) was designed to evaluate ethanol content conveniently and rapidly. Desirable linear relationship is observed between ratio of fluorescence intensity (I₅₂₅/I₄₄₁) and ethanol content under the excitation of 383 nm. Visible color transformation of this probe is observed in the ethanol content range 2-20%. Moreover, the ethanol sensing platforms were applied to the detection and evaluation of the alcohol content of liquor, and the recoveries in liquor were in the range 99.7% to 113%, broadening the applications of Cu NCs and providing a sensitive detection method for ethanol.

"Turn-off" sensing probe based on fluorescent gold nanoclusters for the sensitive detection of hemin

Balanced level of hemin in the body is fundamentally important for normal human organ function. Therefore, environmentally benign, stable, and fluorescent metal nanoclusters (NCs) for selective and sensitive detection of hemin have been investigated and reported. Herein, highly orange red emissive gold NCs are successfully synthesized using glutathione as a reducing and stabilizing agent (GSH-Au NCs). The clusters are characterized using various techniques like Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV-vis spectroscopy, and fluorescence spectrometer. The fluorescence intensity of as-synthesized Au NCs strongly quenched upon addition of different concentrations of hemin. The decrease in fluorescence intensity of GSH-Au NCs has been applied for determination of hemin concentration in the linear range from 1 to 25 nM with a low limit of detection (LOD) of 0.43 nM. The method was also successfully applied for quantification of hemin in human serum sample. In view of this reality, the system can be considered as a possible strategy and excellent platform for determination of hemin in various areas of application.

Understanding the selective-sensing mechanism of lysine by fluorescent nanosensors based on graphene quantum dots

The selectivity of single-amino acid nanosensors is still not well understood. Herein, the factors that govern graphene-based nanomaterials for the selective detection of lysine are reported to guide the design of single-amino acid nanosensors. Graphene quantum dots (GQDs), nitrogen-doped GQDs (N-GQDs), and nitrogen/sulfur co-doped GQDs (N,S-GQDs) were used to sense lysine. The interaction mode and mechanism adjusted selectivity of the zero-dimensional graphene-based quantum dots to lysine ascribe to the solution behavior, molecular size, number of atoms as electron donors in graphene, and driving force. Being a basic amino acid, lysine is protonated with a positive charge below solution pH of 9. It adsorbed on the graphene-based quantum dots via electrostatic attraction, which blocked the internal charge transfer pathway inducing fluorescence enhancement at 420 nm. The protonated ɛ-amine side of lysine is responsible for the course. The small diameter of the lysine of ɛ-amine (<0.35 nm) favored its approach to the quantum dots, resulting in a fluorescence change, which could not be achieved with the larger arginine. The activated sites for interaction with lysine located at the edges of the layers of graphene to reach high selectivity. The N-GQDs and N,S-GQDs are much more sensitive to lysine than the GQDs because they contain nitrogen atoms as electron donors. They had similar linear detection ranges and detection limits, which suggested that the contribution of sulfur for lysine detection was minor. The results of this study provide new insights into the design of GQDs-based single-analyte nanosensors with high selectivity.

Photonic crystal enhanced gold-silver nanoclusters fluorescent sensor for Hg2+ ion

Luminescent nanoclusters (NCs) have attracted much attention because of their good photostability and low toxicity, however, the low quantum yield is still a deficiency, and many increasing efforts are being devoted to enhance the luminescence intensity of NCs. In this paper, a method of enhancing the fluorescent signal of gold-silver nanoclusters (AuAgNCs) by photonic crystals (PhCs) was proposed. The fluorescent intensity of AuAgNCs on PhCs can be enhanced 8.0-fold in comparison to the control sample without PhCs. Furthermore, a novel fluorescence sensor of AuAgNCs based on PhCs is used for the sensitive and selective detection of Hg²⁺ ion in the aqueous solution, the detection limit is 0.35 nM due to the PhCs enhancement effect for the fluorescence. This proposed method may not only develop a highly sensitive method for determination of Hg²⁺ ion, but also expand the application of AuAgNCs in ultra-trace analysis.

Activation of atom-precise clusters for catalysis

The use of atom-precise, ligand-protected metal clusters has exceptional promise towards the fabrication of model supported-nanoparticle heterogeneous catalysts which have controlled sizes and compositions. One major challenge in the field involves the ease at which metallic clusters sinter upon removal of protected ligands, thus destroying the structural integrity of the model system. This review focuses on methods used to activate atom-precise thiolate-stabilized clusters for heterogeneous catalysis, and strategies that can be used to mitigate sintering. Thermal activation is the most commonly employed approach to activate atom-precise metal clusters, though a variety of chemical and photochemical activation strategies have also been reported. Material chemistry methods that can mitigate sintering are also explored, which include overcoating of clusters with metal oxide supports fabricated by sol-gel chemistry or atomic layer deposition of thin oxide films or encapsulating clusters within porous supports. In addition to focusing on the preservation of the size and morphology of deprotected metal clusters, the fate of the removed ligands is also explored, because detached and/or oxidized ligands can also greatly influence the overall properties of the catalyst systems. We also show that modern characterization techniques such as X-ray absorption spectroscopy and high-resolution electron microscopy have the capacity to enable careful monitoring of particle sintering upon activation of metal clusters.

Biomedical Applications for Gold Nanoclusters: Recent Developments and Future Perspectives

Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) have been extensively applied as a fluorescent probe for biomedical applications in imaging, detection, and therapy due to their unique chemical and physical properties. Fluorescent probes of AuNCs have exhibited high compatibility, superior photostablility, and excellent water solubility which resulted in remarkable biomedical applications for long-term imaging, high-sensitivity detection, and target-specific treatment. Recently, great efforts have been made in the developments of AuNCs as the fluorescent probes for various biomedical applications. In this review, we have collected fluorescent AuNCs prepared by different ligands, including small molecules, polymers, and biomacromolecules, and highlighted current achievements of AuNCs in biomedical applications for imaging, detection, and therapy. According to these advances, we further provided conclusions of present challenges and future perspectives of AuNCs for fundamental investigations and practical biomedical applications.

Gold nanocluster-based ratiometric fluorescent probes for hydrogen peroxide and enzymatic sensing of uric acid

A method is described for ratiometric fluorometric assays of H₂O₂ by using two probes that have distinct response profiles. Under the catalytic action of ferrous ion, the 615 nm emission of protein-stabilized gold nanoclusters (under 365 nm photoexcitation) is quenched by H₂O₂, while an increased signal is generated with a peak at 450 nm by oxidizing coumarin with the H₂O₂/Fe(II) system to form a blue emitting fluorophore. These decrease/increase responses give a ratiometric signal. The ratio of the fluorescences at the two peaks are linearly related to the concentration of H₂O₂ in the range from 0.05 to 10 μM, with a 7.7 nM limit of detection. The detection scheme was further coupled to the urate oxidase catalyzed oxidation of uric acid which proceeds under the formation of H₂O₂. This method provides an simple and effective means for the construction of ratiometric fluorometric (enzymatic) assays that involve the detection of H₂O₂. Graphical abstract Under catalysis by ferrous ion, hydrogen peroxide quenches the luminescence of gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) and oxidizes coumarin into a fluorescent derivative, which rendered fluorescence ON and OFF at two distinct wavelengths for ratiometric measurements.