Carbon dots for efficient detection of water content in organic solvents.

The trace amount of water in organic solvents can affect the progress of chemical reactions, which will adversely affect chemical production in many industries, resulting in a doubling of costs. In this work, carbon dots (CDs) with abundant polar groups were synthesized by a simple one-step hydrothermal method. The prepared CDs showed superior dispersibility and fluorescence performance compared to the CDs that have been reported for the detection of water content in organic solvents.

Covalent post-synthetic modification of MOFs as a fluorescent sensor for the efficient detection of the biomarker of cystinuria.

Cystinuria is a genetic disorder, and in severe cases, it might lead to kidney failure. As an important biomarker for cystinuria, the level of arginine (Arg) in urine is a vital indicator for cystinuria screening. Therefore, it is urgently needed to detect Arg with high selectivity and sensitivity.

Fluorescent sensor based on bismuth metal-organic frameworks (Bi-MOFs) mimic enzyme for HO detection in real samples and distinction of phenylenediamine isomers.

Although peroxidase-like nano-enzymes have been widely utilized in biosensors, nano-enzyme based biosensors are seldom used for both quantitative analysis of HO and differentiation of isomers of organic compounds simultaneously. In this study, a dual-functional mimetic enzyme-based fluorescent sensor was constructed using metal-organic frameworks (Bi-MOFs) with exceptional oxidase activity and fluorescence properties. This mimetic enzyme sensor facilitated quantitative analysis of HO and accurate discrimination of phenylenediamine isomers.

Hollow NiS@CoS with core-satellite nanostructure derived from metal-organic framework (MOF)-on-MOF hybrids as an electrode material for supercapacitors.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have found wide applications in the field of supercapacitors due to their highly controllable porous structure, big specific surface area, and abundant chemical functional groups. MOF-on-MOF hybrids not only enhance the composition of MOFs (such as ligands and/or metal centers) but also provide greater structural diversity. By utilizing MOFs as precursors for preparing sulfides, the unique characteristics and inherent structure of MOFs are preserved but their conductivity and capacitance are enhanced.

Rapid detection of the biomarker for cystinuria by a metal-organic framework fluorescent sensor.

Arginine (Arg) is considered a valuable biomarker for various diseases, including cystinuria, and its concentration level holds significant implications for human health. To achieve the purposes of food evaluation and clinical diagnosis, it is imperative to develop a rapid and facile method for selective and sensitive determination of Arg. In this work, a novel fluorescent material (Ag/Eu/CDs@UiO-66) was synthesized by encapsulating carbon dots (CDs), Eu and Ag  into UiO-66.

Nitrogen-doped carbon dots for sensitive detection of ferric ions and monohydrogen phosphate by the naked eye and imaging in living cells.

Nitrogen doped carbon dots (N-CDs) have been prepared a one-pot hydrothermal method by using formamide and -phenylenediamine as the carbon precursors. The as-fabricated N-CDs display excellent water dispersibility, good biocompatibility and anti-photobleaching properties. A strong emission band with an emission maximum ( ) of 556 nm is observed under 450 nm excitation, and a large Stokes shift of 106 nm is presented.

A spiropyran functionalized fluorescent probe for mitochondria targeting and imaging of endogenous hydrogen sulfide in living cells.

A turn-on spiropyran functionalized fluorescein derivative (FMC) is developed for targeting HS- in mitochondria. FMC exhibits very weak fluorescence at 525 nm under the excitation of 470 nm in aqueous solution due to its colorless spiropyran form; upon addition of HS-, a strong fluorescence enhancement by 6.4-fold is observed with spirocycle-opened merocyanine form and rapid trapping kinetics for HS-.