A self-calibrating ratiometric fluorescence sensor with photonic crystal-based signal amplification for the detection of tetracycline in food

Licheng Yu; Yi Yang; Xiaowen Jiang; Yijun Li; Xiwen He; Langxing Chen; Yukui Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.139418

A self-calibrating ratiometric fluorescence sensor with photonic crystal-based signal amplification for the detection of tetracycline in food

Food Chem. 2024 Apr 22:451:139418. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.139418. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Licheng Yu¹, Yi Yang², Xiaowen Jiang², Yijun Li³, Xiwen He⁴, Langxing Chen⁵, Yukui Zhang⁶

Affiliations

¹ College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.. Electronic address: 2120180870@mail.nankai.edu.cn.
² College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.
³ College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.; National Demonstration Center for Experimental Chemistry Education (Nankai University), Tianjin 300071, China.. Electronic address: yijunli@nankai.edu.cn.
⁴ College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.. Electronic address: xiwenhe@nankai.edu.cn.
⁵ College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.. Electronic address: lxchen@nankai.edu.cn.
⁶ College of Chemistry, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biosensing and Molecular Recognition, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.; Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian 116011, China. Electronic address: ykzhang@dicp.ac.cn.

PMID: 38677133
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.139418

Abstract

A dual-color ratiometric fluorescence sensor based on photonic crystals (PCs) was developed to detect tetracycline (TC) in food. PC was fabricated via self-assembly of carbon dots (CDs)-loaded SiO₂ nanoparticles. Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) and copper ions (Cu²⁺) were then adsorbed onto the PC for sensor fabrication. The fluorescence of AuNCs was amplified by the PC with an enhancement ratio of 7.6, providing higher sensitivity. The fluorescence of AuNCs was quenched by Cu²⁺, whereas that of CDs remained unchanged as an internal reference. TC restored the fluorescence of AuNCs owing to its complexation with Cu²⁺, resulting in a change in the fluorescence intensity ratio. The sensor exhibited a good linear relationship with TC concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 10 μM, with a detection limit of 34 nM. Furthermore, the sensor was applied for TC detection in food with satisfactory recoveries and relative standard deviations, revealing great potential in practical application.

Keywords: Carbon dots; Food samples; Gold nanoclusters; Photonic crystal; Ratiometric fluorescence sensor; Tetracycline detection.