Carbon dots-based fluorescence sensor for two-photon imaging of pH in diabetic mice

Abstract

Herein, a reversible pH fluorescent sensor was developed using caffeic acid as the precursor by one-step solvothermal synthesis method. The carbon dots-based sensor (CA-CDs) exhibited pH-dependent increase in fluorescence intensity and showed linear relationship in the range of pH 6.60 and 8.00. Notably, the fluorescence sensor has a reversible response to pH change. Finally, the CA-CDs has been successfully applied for two-photon imaging of the pH in liver and kidney of diabetic mice. Imaging results showed that the pH value in kidney of diabetic mice was lower than that of the normal mice, while the pH value in liver of diabetic mice was almost the same as that of the normal mice. The present study provides a simple analytical method for pH detection suitable for in vivo.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

carbon dots / two-photon imaging / pH / diabetic mice

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 21927811, 22076106 and 21874084), National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2019YFA0210100), Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (Grant No. ZR2019JQ07).

Electronic Supplementary Material

Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11705-022-2212-9 and is accessible for authorized users.

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