Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots with a 3-mercaptopropionic acid assembly as a ratiometric fluorescence probe for the determination of curcuminElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5ra01412c

• Main Authors: Zhao, Xiaojuan, Li, Fengxia, Zhang, Qingyan, Li, Zengbo, Zhou, Yehong, Yang, Jun, Dong, Chuan, Wang, Junping, Shuang, Shaomin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2046-2069
• DOI: 10.1039/c5ra01412c

Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots capped with 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) were synthesized by a facile method in aqueous solution as a ratiometric fluorescent ( I 590 nm / I 458 nm ) probe for curcumin. Curcumin caused defect-related fluorescence quenching of the probe at 458 nm, whereas the orange transition emission of the probe at 590 nm changed only negligibly with variations in curcumin concentration. The MPA-assembled Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots were used for the simple, sensitive and non-toxic determination of curcumin. Under the optimized conditions, the response to curcumin was linear in the range 0.16-16.9 μM with a detection limit of 37 nM. The method was successfully applied to the determination of trace amounts of curcumin in urine samples with recoveries of 97.73-109.73%. Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots capped with 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) were synthesized by a facile method in aqueous solution as a ratiometric fluorescent ( I 590 nm / I 458 nm ) probe for curcumin.