A target-induced fluorescent nanoparticle for in situ monitoring of Zn(II)

A target-induced fluorescent silica nanoparticle has been developed for the identification, enrichment and in situ determination of trace amounts of zinc(II). The nanoparticle combines the advantages of target-induced fluorescent compounds and the small size of the nanomaterial to produce a new, smarter nanosignaling material that is capable of selectively enriching a target and detecting a specific binding process in one step. As the target analyte, Zn(II), changes the fluorescence characteristics of the nanoparticle and effectively 'turns on' the fluorescence signal, no separation step is needed to confirm or quantify the binding process. The designed nanoparticle was characterized by several aspects prior to monitoring of Zn(II) in situ. The interferences from common metal ions were studied in detail. The photostability and reversibility of the sensing materials were investigated as well. The ability of this nanoparticle to detect the target Zn(II) provides a great advantage for in situ monitoring targets in biological samples under the fluorescence microscope.