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Two-component ratiometric sensor for Cu2+ detection on paper-based device

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Abstract

The copper(II) ion (Cu2+) has played an indispensable role in diverse kinds of functional physiological processes of organisms, which has become of growing interest. Despite the fact that numerous Cu2+ test papers using fluorescent probes have been fabricated, sensors featuring the ratiometric property that integrates quenched probes and an inner standard dye are rarely reported. Herein, a two-component ratiometric sensor in a paper-based device is proposed to realize highly selective Cu2+ detection. To overcome shortcomings such as low signal-to-noise ratio and incorrect response of the quenching probe, a novel BODIPY-based turn-off probe (P2017) is designed and introduced into the paper-based device with better water solubility and selectivity for Cu2+ detection. Furthermore, a reference dye (B001), exhibiting an emission at 690 nm when the excitation wavelength is 480 nm, is also introduced into the paper-based device. These two components can enhance the quality of the signal as P2017 is sensitively quenched by Cu2+, while B001 with a photostable property, serving as an internal benchmark, is unable to react with Cu2+. The results indicated that the two components provided a new concept for optimizing paper-based device fabrication and developing accurate, simple, and inexpensive Cu2+ detection methods, which could be potentially applied to monitor human health and the environment in remote areas.

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Funding

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81672508 and 61601218), Jiangsu Provincial Foundation for Distinguished Young Scholars (BK20170041, BK20170042), Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province (2019JM-016), China-Sweden Joint Mobility Project (51811530018), and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.

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Author notes

  1. Jia Zhou and Qiong Wu contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Flexible Electronics (KLOFE) & Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Nanjing Tech University (NanjingTech), 30 South Puzhu Road, Nanjing, 211816, China

    Jia Zhou, Qiong Wu, Xingwei Chen, Xiaofei Qin, Gaobin Zhang, Meirong Wu, Haixiao Fang, Yao Lu, Haidong Yu, Lin Li & Wei Huang

  2. Shaanxi Institute of Flexible Electronics (SIFE), Northwestern Polytechnical University (NPU), 127 West Youyi Road, Xi’an, 710072, China

    Wei Huang

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  1. Jia Zhou
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  2. Qiong Wu
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  4. Xiaofei Qin
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Correspondence to Xiaofei Qin or Lin Li.

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Zhou, J., Wu, Q., Chen, X. et al. Two-component ratiometric sensor for Cu2+ detection on paper-based device. Anal Bioanal Chem 411, 6165–6172 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-019-02007-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-019-02007-6

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