Rational design of a FRET-based ratiometric fluorescent probe with large Pseudo-Stokes shift for detecting Hg2+ in living cells based on rhodamine and anthracene fluorophores

The development of fluorescent dyes has been a continuing attractive research topic in the field of fluorescence sensing and bioimaging technologies, most of them were subject to a single signal change. In this work, a novel colorimetric and ratiometric fluorescent probe 1 based on rhodamine and anthracene groups was designed and synthesized via the fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) mechanism. Probe 1 showed excellent selectivity, higher sensitivity and ratiometric response to Hg2+ in the CH3CN/ H2O (1/1, v/v) system, with a fast response time (less than 30 s); The fluorescent color changed from purple to orange and the solution visible to the naked-eye changed from colorless to pink. The Pseudo-Stokes shift was 174 nm upon addition of Hg2+. The limit of detection (LOD) was calculated to be 0.81 lM and 0.38 lM according to fluorescence and UV/vis measurements, respectively. Furthermore, a possible mechanism for the detection of Hg2+ by probe 1 was verified by using 1H NMR, ESI-MS, and HPLC spectra. Meanwhile, probe 1 was successfully used for cell imaging for the detection of Hg2+ in living cells. (c) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

In this study, a novel fluorescent probe 1 based on rhodamine and anthracene groups was designed and synthesized for the selective, sensitive, and ratiometric detection of Hg2+ using the FRET mechanism. The probe exhibited a fast response time and a visible color change, and it was successfully used for cell imaging of Hg2+ detection. The mechanism of Hg2+ detection by probe 1 was verified through various experimental techniques.