A novel fluorescent probe based on isolongifolanone-coupled acridine derivative for ultrafast and ultrasensitive detection of glyphosate via Cu2+ displacement and its application in environmental, food samples and biological imaging.

The extensive use of glyphosate in agriculture and the accumulation of heavy metal ions in the environment pose serious threats to food safety and human health. Herein, a dual-function fluorescent probe BO-BABP-OH based on an isolongifolanone scaffold was reported, and it realized the continuous detection of Cu2+ and glyphosate by in situ complex and selective replacement. Probe BO-BABP-OH displayed a fluorescence quenching response induced by Cu2+, and the fluorescence color of the probe was changed from bright yellow to colorless. However, the bright yellow emission of the probe was immediately restored after addition of glyphosate. Both BO-BABP-OH and the BO-BABP-OH + Cu2+ complex demonstrated excellent selectivity, strong anti-interference performance, and low detection limits (18 nM for Cu2+, 15 nM for glyphosate), and rapid response times (2 s for Cu2+, 4 s for glyphosate), respectively. The quantitative determination of glyphosate in various actual samples including water, soil and food samples was realized by this sensing system with satisfactory accuracy. In addition, BO-BABP-OH and the BO-BABP-OH + Cu2+ complex can successfully monitor Cu2+ and glyphosate in diverse biological models including living cells, zebrafish and Arabidopsis thaliana.