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Review
. 2023 Oct:76:102374.
doi: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2023.102374. Epub 2023 Jul 28.

Luminescent lanthanide probes for cations and anions: Promises, compromises, and caveats

Thibaut L M Martinon  1 , Valérie C Pierre  2
Affiliations
Review

Luminescent lanthanide probes for cations and anions: Promises, compromises, and caveats

Thibaut L M Martinon et al. Curr Opin Chem Biol. 2023 Oct.

Abstract

The long luminescence lifetimes and sharp emission bands of luminescent lanthanide complexes have long been recognized as invaluable strengths for sensing and imaging in complex aqueous biological or environmental media. Herein we discuss the recent developments of these probes for sensing metal ions and, increasingly, anions. Underappreciated in the field, buffers and metal hydrolysis influence the response of many responsive lanthanide probes. The inherent complexities arising from these interactions are further discussed.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Valerie C Pierre reports financial support was provided by National Science Foundation. Valerie C. Pierre reports financial support was provided by National Institutes of Health.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Most common approach to the design of responsive lanthanide-based luminescent probes for ions. Probes for cations generally incorporate a quencher that decreases the luminescence of the emitting lanthanide by photoelectron transfer (PeT). Coordination of a metal to the PeT quencher eliminates this decay pathway and restores the luminescence of the lanthanide (top). Probes for anions generally incorporate one or more open coordination sites that are filled with water molecules, which quench lanthanide luminescence due to energy transfer to the 4th vibrational overtone of H2O. Coordination on an anion occurs via displacement of the water molecules, which restores the luminescence of the lanthanide (bottom).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Luminescent lanthanide-based probes for biologically relevant cations.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Luminescent lanthanide-based probes for biologically relevant anions.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Similar GdIII-based MRI contrast agents shown to have selective binding of copper in PBS (left) and zinc in HEPES (right), respectively. Note the presence of an extra methyl in 16.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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