Quinoline based reversible fluorescent 'turn-on' chemosensor for the selective detection of Zn2+: Application in living cell imaging and as INHIBIT logic gate

Abstract

A highly sensitive and selective quinoline based reversible chemosensor (HL) for the efficient detection of Zn2+ has been developed. The synthesized chemosensor HL is highly efficient in detecting Zn2+ over other metal ions commonly obtained in physiological and environmental samples. HL shows fluorescence 'turn-on' response with 53 fold enhancement of emission intensity in presence of Zn2+. The limit of detection is 5.0 × 10-9 M. HL is efficient in detecting Zn2+ intracellularly and also exhibits an INHIBIT logic gate with Zn2+ and EDTA as chemical inputs by monitoring the emission mode. Electronic structure and sensing mechanism have been interpreted by DFT and TDDFT calculations.