Carbon Nanodots-Based Fluorescent Turn-On Sensor Array for Biothiols.

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Materials Science

Background:

• Biothiols are crucial molecules involved in numerous biological processes.
• Accurate detection and differentiation of biothiols are essential for biological and medical research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel sensor array for the detection and differentiation of multiple biothiols.
• To utilize silver ion-mediated fluorescence quenching and recovery for biothiol sensing.

Main Methods:

• Synthesized three types of Ag+-sensitive carbon nanodots (CDs) using amino acids and urea via microwave synthesis.
• Constructed a sensor array based on the differential fluorescence response of CDs to Ag+ and subsequent biothiol interaction.
• Applied Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for pattern recognition and biothiol identification.

Main Results:

• Ag+ binding quenched CD fluorescence; biothiols recovered fluorescence by chelating Ag+.
• The CD-Ag+ array generated unique fluorescence variation patterns for six different biothiols.
• PCA successfully clustered and identified biothiols using both three- and two-sensor arrays.
• The sensor arrays demonstrated effective biothiol identification across a wide concentration range (>10 μM).

Conclusions:

• The developed carbon nanodot-based sensor array provides a sensitive and selective method for biothiol detection and differentiation.
• PCA analysis enables robust identification of complex biothiol mixtures, even with a simplified sensor array.
• This approach holds promise for applications in biological sensing and diagnostics requiring biothiol analysis.