title: Facile one-pot synthesis of L-proline-stabilized fluorescent gold nanoclusters and its application as sensing probes for serum iron.
abstract: Gold nanoclusters (Au NCs) possess outstanding physical and chemical attributes that make them excellent scaffolds for the construction of novel chemical and biological sensors. In this study, a simple one-pot synthesis method, employing l-proline as the stabilizer, was presented for preparation of fluorescent Au NCs. This strategy allowed the generation of water-soluble Au NCs within a short time of 15 min. The as-prepared Au NCs exhibited a bluish fluorescence emission at 440 nm and a quantum yield of 2.94%. Based on the aggregation-induced fluorescence quenching mechanism, the Au NCs provided favorable biocompatibility, high sensitivity and good selectivity for the measurement of ferric ion (Fe(3+)). Furthermore, serum samples were analyzed for the serum iron contents by using this proposed biocompatible fluorescent sensor, indicating the potential value of this Au NCs-based fluorescent sensor for application in biological and clinical analysis.
authors.affiliation: Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Living Biosystems, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100190 Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Mu
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Qiao
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.forename: Zongxiu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Nie
authors.forename: Huimin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ma
mesh_terms: D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D007501:Iron / Q000097:blood*; D008958:Models, Molecular; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry*; D011392:Proline / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D006046:Gold; D011392:Proline; D007501:Iron
keywords: Ferric ion; Fluorescence; Gold nanocluster; Serum iron; l-proline