Spectrofluorometric determination of berberine using a novel Au nanocluster with large Stokes shift

Abstract

Berberine hydrochloride (BHC), a natural isoquinoline alkaloid, is widely applied as a an agent in traditional Chinese medicine. Almost all the traditional methods for BHC detection require complicated preprocessing steps or expensive instruments. In this article, we report a simple, rapid, sensitive, and selective method for BHC detection using fluorescent gold nanoclusters (F-AuNCs) as the fluorescent probe with a large Stokes shift of 237 nm. The F-AuNCs prepared with citrate-stabilized stannous chloride and hydrogen tetrachloroaurate(III) as raw materials in an aqueous medium display strong and stable fluorescence at 566 nm. When F-AuNCs are mixed with BHC, the fluorescence of F-AuNCs is effectively quenched. Under optimized conditions, this method allows sensitive and selective measurements of BHC in a concentration ranging from 1.0 × 10 to 1.0 × 10 mol L with a detection limit of 7.5 × 10 mol L, which is relatively low among reported spectral methods. This method provides excellent selectivity for the detection of BHC against inorganic anions and natural amino acids. In addition, the BHC content in two different types of berberine tablets was successfully determined by this method and the results showed high accuracy. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

White light employing luminescent engineered large (mega) Stokes shift molecules: a review

“…Wen and co-workers also worked on fluorescent Au nanoclusters (AuNCs) with a mega Stokes shift of up to 237 nm that can detect berberine hydrochloride (BHC). 65 The AuNCs were prepared from citrate-stabilized stannous chloride and hydrogen tetrachloroaurate( iii ) as raw materials via hydrothermal method. The material was capable of fluorescing at long wavelength emission (566 nm) and quenched gradually upon increasing detection of BHC, which made it remarkably useful as a sensitive and selective spectrofluorometric probe.…”

A Sensitive and Selective Fluorescent Sensor for Berberine Chloride Based on the Supramolecular Self-Assembly of Perylene Diimide in Aqueous Solution

“…Figure S3 revealed that when BBC was added to the PDI-Asp solution, the fluorescence at 546 nm was quenched within 15 s and kept unchanged for 30 min, demonstrating a rapid detection of BBC. According to the IUPAC method, 45 the limit of detection (LOD) could be calculated using the expression of 3σ/K, where σ and K were standard deviation of negative control and the slope of regression line, respectively. In this assay, it was as low as 28 nM.…”

“…However, the current reports on BBC are mainly focused on bioactivities and clinical applications, , and few related sensing strategies have been reported. Several techniques have been devoted to determination of BBC, for instance, HPLC, LC-MS, near-infrared spectroscopy, capillary electrophoresis, , chemiluminescence, electrochemical analysis, light scattering technique, and optical sensing based on nanomaterials and host–guest interactions. − Although many merits related to these methods, some drawbacks including sophisticated synthesis, tedious sample preparation, requirement of expensive instruments, high cost and ambitious test process still existed. Hence, it is significant to develop a rapid and simple method for the detection of BBC.…”

Fabrication of a Luminescent Supramolecular Hydrogel Based on the AIE Strategy of Gold Nanoclusters and their Application as a Luminescence Switch

“…Luminescent materials have attracted widespread attention because of their wide application in the fields of sensors, optoelectronic devices, bioimaging, data encryption, and so on. − Among these luminescent materials, a new kind of inorganic–organic hybrid material, gold nanoclusters (AuNCs), has attracted a tremendous interest from researchers owing to its promising characteristics, such as ultrasmall size (<2 nm), large Stocks shift, low toxicity, long lifetime, and good biocompatibility. − Especially, different from the aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) property of organic dye molecules and carbon quantum dots, AuNCs exhibit aggregation-induced emission (AIE) property, which broadens the application of luminescent materials in the aggregation state. − Xie et al first reported the AIE property of the Au­(I) complex in 2012 . After that, a series of methods were discovered to enhance the emission of NCs, such as the good/poor mixed solvent method, exchange of ligands, and space-confined effect. − All these research studies provided efficient avenues for enhancing the photoluminescence (PL) of nanoclusters and expanded the application of nanoclusters in chemical sensing, fluorescent probing, drug delivery, and other areas. − Nonetheless, the current development of nanoclusters has not yet reached an unambiguous agreement on the AIE fundamentals of nanocluster luminescence, for example, on the degree of the influence of aggregation and the aggregate structure on the emission energy and intensity of nanoclusters.…”