Recent Progress in Thiazole Based Chemosensors for Toxic Ions: Mechanisms, Strategies, and Future Perspectives

Thiazole derivatives have emerged as powerful scaffolds in the design of chemosensors due to their excellent photophysical properties, structural versatility, and strong coordination capabilities with various toxic ions. Recent advances have demonstrated significant improvements in the development of selective and sensitive chemosensors targeting environmentally and biologically hazardous ions such as Hg²⁺, Pb²⁺, Cd²⁺, As³⁺, CN⁻, and F⁻. This review highlights the latest progress in the design and application of thiazole/benzothiazole-based chemosensors, focusing on their sensing mechanisms-including photoinduced electron transfer (PET), intramolecular charge transfer (ICT), and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-as well as strategic modifications to enhance selectivity, sensitivity, and water solubility. Challenges related to real-time monitoring, bioimaging, and field-deployable devices are discussed, and future perspectives are proposed to guide the rational design of next-generation sensors with improved environmental and biomedical applicability.