A novel strategy: A consecutive reaction was used to distinguish in the presence of statins between normal cells and cancer cells.

Statins, as the most commonly drugs could reduce the concentration of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, have been proved to elevate the H2S generation in cells. Besides, the abnormal levels of biothiols might lead to cancer. Therefore, it is worth considering how to combine the characteristics of the two diseases to realize the detection of cancer cells. Based on this view, we developed a multiresponse fluorescent probe for the detection of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and biothiols successively based on theoretical calculation. It is interesting that the fluorescence intensity of the probe reacting H2S and biothiols successively was significantly higher than that of probe reacting either of them. Based on this view, we further explored the biological application of the probe and found that the probe had obvious signal response to cancer cells than the normal cells in the presence of fluvastatin. This interesting finding might provide a new insight into cancer cell recognition.