Fluorescence light up detection of aluminium ion and imaging in live cells based on the aggregation-induced emission enhancement of thiolated gold nanoclusters

摘要

In this paper, a new strategy was presented for fluorescence labeling and imaging Al3+ in live cells with excess aluminum ions using thiolated fluorescence gold nanoclusters (Au NCs). The glutathione (GSH)-capped Au NCs were prepared via a green, facile one-pot method in aqueous solution and displayed excellent stability, ultra-small size, monodispersity, and larger Stokes shift, which exhibits a relatively weak fluorescence at 650 nm Al3+-induced fluorescence enhancement of the GSH-Au NCs can be observed due to Al3+-triggered aggregation-induced emission (AIE) effect, which allows the role of GSH-Au NCs as a fluorescence light-up probe for detection of Al3+ Moreover, it was demonstrated that the fluorescence probe for Al3+ showed a wide detection range from 100 to 600 mu M and good selectivity against other metal ions and common biomolecule. Furthermore, due to the advantages of excellent biocompatibility, low toxicity, red emission and high specificity, the proposed GSH-Au NCs fluorescence probes are suitable for the imaging of high concentrations of aluminum ions in cells, which can be applied to the diagnosis of cellular aluminum poisoning.