Detection of anabolic steroids via cyclodextrin-promoted fluorescence modulation

Reported herein is the detection of anabolic steroids through the use of cyclodextrin-promoted interactions between the analyte of interest and a high quantum yield fluorophore, which lead to measurable, analyte-specific changes in the fluorophore emission signal. By using a variety of β-cyclodextrin derivatives (unmodified β-cyclodextrin, methyl-β-cyclodextrin, and 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin) in combination with high quantum yield fluorophore rhodamine 6G, we detected five anabolic steroid analytes with 100% differentiation between structurally similar analytes and micromolar level limits of detection. Overall, these results show significant potential in the development of practical, fluorescence-based steroid detection devices.