title: Aggregation-Induced Emission Active Probe for Light-Up Detection of Anionic Surfactants and Wash-Free Bacterial Imaging.
abstract: Anionic surfactants are widely used in daily life and industries, but their residues can cause serious damage to the environment. The current detection methods for anionic surfactants suffer from various limitations and a new detection strategy is highly desirable. Based on 2-(2-hydroxyphenyl)benzothiazole fluorogen with aggregation-induced emission characteristics, we have developed a fluorescent probe HBT-C18 for selective and sensitive detection of anionic surfactants. By in situ formation of catanionic aggregates or micelles with anionic surfactants, the emission intensity of the HBT-C18 probe can increase with increasing keto/enol emission ratio through restriction of intramolecular motion and excited-state intramolecular proton-transfer mechanisms. The probe can also be used for wash-free imaging of bacteria enveloped by a negatively charged outer membrane. The results of this study provide a new strategy for sensitive detection of anionic surfactants and wash-free bacterial imaging.
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Innovative Research Team, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials & Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Innovative Research Team, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials & Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Luochao
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Junjian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Innovative Research Team, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials & Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Shiwu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Innovative Research Team, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials & Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Guanhai
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Yingjun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Innovative Research Team, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials & Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Anjun
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Innovative Research Team, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials & Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, P. R. China. tangbenz@ust.hk.|Department of Chemistry and, Hong Kong Branch of Chinese National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, P. R. China. tangbenz@ust.hk.
authors.forename: Ben Zhong
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0293-964X
authors.initials: BZ
authors.lastname: Tang
keywords: aggregation-induced emission; catanionic aggregates; fluorescence; proton transfer; surfactants