Nano-sized aggregation induced emissive probe for highly sensitive hypochlorous acid detection

A highly sensitive aggregation-induced emissive probe KG1 was developed for detecting hypochlorous acid in an aqueous medium. The KG1 aggregates display excellent fluorescence in a THF:water (10:90) ratio, and the derived aggregates were thoroughly characterized by HRTEM and photophysical investigations. The results indicate that KG1 aggregates have a spherical in shape with an average particle size of 5 nm. Further, the light scattering capability of KG1 aggregates is validated through the Tyndall effect. The KG1 aggregates have a high fluorescence lifetime (similar to 6 ns) and a quantum yield of 46%, making them suitable for bio-imaging and sensing applications. The sensing ability of KG1 aggregates is evaluated by titrating various concentrations of hypo-chlorous acid in an aqueous medium. Notably, probe KG1 can detect hypochlorous acid without interference and has a low detection limit of 667 pM. The sensing mechanism was demonstrated through HRMS analysis. Overall, as a result of its excellent fluorescent and sensing properties, the probe KG1 was successfully applied to visualize hypochlorous acid in zebrafish. As a result, this probe is expected to be a prospective tool for investigating the biological mechanisms of hypochlorous acid in living systems.

Automated summary

A highly sensitive probe KG1 was developed to detect hypochlorous acid in water. The KG1 aggregates showed excellent fluorescence and were characterized by HRTEM and photophysical investigations. The KG1 aggregates have a spherical shape with an average size of 5 nm, and they have a high fluorescence lifetime and a quantum yield of 46%, making them suitable for bio-imaging and sensing applications. The probe KG1 can detect hypochlorous acid without interference and has a low detection limit of 667 pM, making it a prospective tool for investigating the biological mechanisms of hypochlorous acid in living systems.