An Indole-Based Fluorescent Chemosensor for Detecting Zn2+ in Aqueous Media and Zebrafish

An indole-based fluorescent chemosensor IH-Sal was synthesized to detect Zn2+. IH-Sal displayed a marked fluorescence increment with Zn2+. The detection limit (0.41 mu M) of IH-Sal for Zn2+ was greatly below that suggested by the World Health Organization. IH-Sal can quantify Zn2+ in real water samples. More significantly, IH-Sal could determine and depict the presence of Zn2+ in zebrafish. The detecting mechanism of IH-Sal toward Zn2+ was illustrated by fluorescence and UV-visible spectroscopy, DFT calculations, H-1 NMR titration and ESI mass.

Automated summary

IH-Sal, an indole-based fluorescent chemosensor, was synthesized to detect Zn2+. It displayed a significant fluorescence increment with Zn2+ and its detection limit for Zn2+ was much lower than that recommended by the World Health Organization. IH-Sal can quantify and characterize the presence of Zn2+ in real water samples and zebrafish, with the detecting mechanism illustrated through various spectroscopic and computational methods.