Turn-on fluorescence chemosensor for fluoride ions and its applicability in imaging of living cells

The study was easy to prepare fluorescent chemosensor, the urea based triphenylamine conjugated ligand and structurally simple anion probes displayed great selectivity for the fluoride anion over other anions in an aqueous tetrahydrofuran solution. The probe was characterized using NMR spectroscopy, UV-visible, emission spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The sensor showed spectral shifts and intensity changes in the presence of fluoride anions. The Job's plot analysis indicates that the binding stoichiometry to be 1:1. Furthermore, by means of confocal fluorescent microscopy experiments, it has been demonstrated that it can be used as a fluorescent probe for monitoring fluoride ions in the living cells.