Facile Preparation of WO3-x Dots with Remarkably Low Toxicity and Uncompromised Activity as Co-reactants for Clinical Diagnosis by Electrochemiluminescence

The exceptional nature of WO3-x dots has inspired widespread interest, but it is still a significant challenge to synthesize high-quality WO3-x dots without using unstable reactants, expensive equipment, and complex synthetic processes. Herein, the synthesis of ligand-free WO3-x dots is reported that are highly dispersible and rich in oxygen vacancies by a simple but straightforward exfoliation of bulk WS2 and a mild follow-up chemical conversion. Surprisingly, the WO3-x dots emerged as co-reactants for the electrochemiluminescence (ECL) of Ru(bpy)(3)(2+) with a comparable ECL efficiency to the well-known Ru(bpy)(3)(2+)/tripropylamine (TPrA) system. Moreover, compared to TPrA, whose toxicity remains a critical issue of concern, the WO3-x dots were ca. 300-fold less toxic. The potency of WO3-x dots was further explored in the detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) with the most competitive limit of detection so far.