Development of a dual functional luminescent sensor for zinc ion based on a peptidic architecture

A synthetic peptide bearing a lanthanide complex, TbOTZ exhibits a decrease of chromophore fluorescence and a concomitant luminescence enhancement due to sensitized Tb3+ upon Zn2+ binding. Thus, TbOTZ can be a valuable tool for ratiometric sensing of Zn2+ as well as for time-resolved fluorescence detection with a single molecule.