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Fe-doped carbon dots: a novel fluorescent nanoprobe for cellular hypochlorous acid imaging

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Abstract

Real-time monitoring of hypochlorous acid (HClO) in biological systems is of great significance for exploring and regulating its pathological functions because abnormal production of HClO is closely related with many diseases, such as atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and cancer. Herein, we developed a reliable fluorescent Fe-doped carbon dots (Fe-CDs) for the sensitive and selective detection of biological HClO using ferrocenecarboxylic acid and m-phenylenediamine as precursors through a one-step solvothermal procedure. The Fe-CDs exhibited excellent a wide HClO detection range from 20 nmol/L to 1000 nmol/L with corresponding limits of detection at 7.8 nmol/L. The sensing mechanism is based on the chemical oxidation of the hydroxyl groups on the surface of Fe-CDs by HClO. In addition, Fe-CDs also displayed high photoluminescence yield, excitation-independence emission, as well as good biocompatibility, enabling the successful imaging of endogenous and exogenous HClO in HeLa cells. These results revealed that Fe-CDs holds great promise as a robust fluorescent probe for investigating HClO-mediated biological events.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC, No. 21976144 and 22134005), and Chongqing Talents Program for Outstanding Scientists (cstc2021ycjh-bgzxm0179) for financial support.

Funding

This article is funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China, 21976144, Cheng Zhi Huang, 22134005, Cheng Zhi Huang, Chongqing Talents Program for Outstanding Scientists, cstc2021ycjh-bgzxm0179, Lei Zhan.

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Author notes

  1. Yu Meng Yang and Yuan Yan contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Luminescence Analysis and Molecular Sensing (Southwest University), Ministry of Education, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China

    Yu Meng Yang, Jia Ying Zhou, Cheng Zhi Huang & Lei Zhan

  2. Key Laboratory of Luminescent and Real-Time Analytical System (Southwest University), College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chongqing Science and Technology Commission, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China

    Yuan Yan & Shu Jun Zhen

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  1. Yu Meng Yang
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Correspondence to Cheng Zhi Huang, Shu Jun Zhen or Lei Zhan.

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Yang, Y.M., Yan, Y., Zhou, J.Y. et al. Fe-doped carbon dots: a novel fluorescent nanoprobe for cellular hypochlorous acid imaging. ANAL. SCI. 40, 511–518 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s44211-023-00484-5

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