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Updated: Jul 27, 2026
A Step Beyond BRET: Fluorescence by Unbound Excitation from Luminescence (FUEL)
Published on: May 23, 2014
Electrochemiluminescence "turn-off" detection of curcumin via energy transfer using luminol-doped silica
Maoyu Zhao1, Wenjing Qi2, Yuling Fu1
1Chongqing Key Laboratory of Inorganic Functional Materials, College of Chemistry, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, People's Republic of China.
Abstract:
A method is presented for electrochemiluminescent (ECL) detection of the food additive curcumin via an energy transfer strategy and by using luminol-doped silica nanoparticles (luminol-NPs). The ECL emission of the luminol-NPs (peaking at 425 nm) is reduced in the presence of curcumin due to spectral overlap. The assay can be performed within 1 min, response is linear in the 0.1 to 100 µM curcumin concentration range, and the limit of detection is 32 nM. The method is selective over many ions, adenosine triphosphate, ascorbic acid, cysteine and folic acid. It was successfully applied to the determination of curcumin in spiked human serum and urine. The average recoveries range from 99.0 to 102.6%. Graphical abstract Electrochemiluminescence (ECL) "turn-off" detection of curcumin at levels as low as 32 nM via energy transfer using luminol-doped silica nanoparticles. No hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is used in ECL detection which makes the luminol-NPs ECL system more stable than the conventional luminol-H2O2 ECL system.
