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Review
. 2021 Jul 9;26(14):4176.
doi: 10.3390/molecules26144176.

Zinc (II) and AIEgens: The "Clip Approach" for a Novel Fluorophore Family. A Review

Rosita Diana  1 , Barbara Panunzi  1
Affiliations
Review

Zinc (II) and AIEgens: The "Clip Approach" for a Novel Fluorophore Family. A Review

Rosita Diana et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) compounds display a photophysical phenomenon in which the aggregate state exhibits stronger emission than the isolated units. The common term of "AIEgens" was coined to describe compounds undergoing the AIE effect. Due to the recent interest in AIEgens, the search for novel hybrid organic-inorganic compounds with unique luminescence properties in the aggregate phase is a relevant goal. In this perspective, the abundant, inexpensive, and nontoxic d10 zinc cation offers unique opportunities for building AIE active fluorophores, sensing probes, and bioimaging tools. Considering the novelty of the topic, relevant examples collected in the last 5 years (2016-2021) through scientific production can be considered fully representative of the state-of-the-art. Starting from the simple phenomenological approach and considering different typological and chemical units and structures, we focused on zinc-based AIEgens offering synthetic novelty, research completeness, and relevant applications. A special section was devoted to Zn(II)-based AIEgens for living cell imaging as the novel technological frontier in biology and medicine.

Keywords: AIE; fluorescence; zinc complex.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Scheme 1
Scheme 1
The “clip approach” in Zn AIEgens.
Figure 1
Figure 1
Zn AIEgens obtained by encumbered nitrogen and/or oxygen-donor-based ligands.
Figure 2
Figure 2
MOFs acting as highly fluorescent Zn AIEgens.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Zn AIEgens for optical applications.
Figure 4
Figure 4
AIEgens acting as zinc (II) mono-channel sensor.
Figure 5
Figure 5
AIEgens acting as zinc (II) multi-channel sensor.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Macro-structured AIEgens acting as zinc (II) sensor.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Relevant examples of zinc (II)-based AIE active sensors.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Structures and sensing mode of relevant nanosized Zn-AIEgens.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Structures and sensing/marking pattern of relevant AIEgens for zinc (II) detection in living cells.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Structures and sensing/marking pattern of zinc-based AIE active biosensors/markers.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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