Synthesis and applications of a corrole-based dual-responsive fluorescent probe for separate detection of hydrazine...

Here, a corrole-based dual-responsive fluorescent probe DPC-DNBS was rationally designed and synthesized for the separate detection of hydrazine (N₂H₄) and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) with high selectivity and sensitivity. The probe DPC-DNBS is intrinsically none fluorescent due to PET effect, however, addition of increasing amount of N₂H₄ or H₂S to DPC-DNBS turned on an excellent NIR fluorescence centered at 652 nm and thereby provided a colorimetric signaling behavior. The sensing mechanism was verified by HRMS, ¹H NMR and the DFT calculations. Common metal ions and anions do not interfere with the interactions of DPC-DNBS with N₂H₄ or H₂S. Furthermore, the presence of N₂H₄ does not affect the detection of H₂S; however, the presence of H₂S interferes with the detection of N₂H₄. Hence, quantitative detection of N₂H₄ must occur in an H₂S-free environment. The probe DPC-DNBS displayed some fascinating merits in separate detection of these two analytes, including large Stokes shift (233 nm), fast response (15 min for N₂H₄, 30 s for H₂S), low detection limit (90 nM for N₂H₄, 38 nM for H₂S), wide pH range (6-12) and outstanding biological compatibility. Significantly, DPC-DNBS was utilized to detect hydrazine in real water, soil and food samples. And its favorable performances for separate detection N₂H₄ and H₂S were successfully demonstrated in HeLa cells and zebrafish, indicating its value of practical application in biology.