Zinc(II) and pyrophosphate selective fluorescence probe and its application to living cell imaging

A BODIPY-based fluorescent chemosensor 1 selectively detects Zn2+ by significant fluorescence enhancement. The binding ratio of the 1-Zn2+ complex was determined from a Job plot to be 1:1. The binding constant (Ka) of Zn2+ binding to chemosensor 1 was found to be 5.9 × 104 M−1, with a detection limit of 0.59 μM. Furthermore, the 1-Zn2+ complex can specifically detect pyrophosphate (PPi) through fluorescence quenching. The detection limit for detecting PPi was found to be approximately 17.5 μM. Fluorescence microscopy imaging using RAW264.7 cells showed that chemosensor 1 can be used as an effective fluorescent probe for detecting Zn2+ and PPi in living cells.