Dual-functional fluorescent probe responds to hypochlorous acid and SO2 derivatives with different fluorescence signals.

In view of the important roles of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive sulfur species (RSS) in the complex signal transduction and oxidation pathways, fluorescent probes that are able to display distinct signals to hypochlorous acid and SO2 derivatives are highly valuable. Herein, a novel dual-functional probe (DFP) as an efficient single fluorescent-molecule which can respond to HClO and HSO3- with two different sets of fluorescence signals was presented. The DFP displayed desired properties such as high specificity, suitable sensitivity, appreciable water solubility and stability. The sensing mechanism was confirmed by high-resolution mass spectroscopy analysis and 1H NMR spectrometry analysis. Moreover, as a biocompatible molecule, the DFP has been successfully applied for the detection of HClO in living cells with a dual-channel mode. Therefore, the present work established a novel strategy for monitoring the multiple ROS and RSS species using a single fluorescent probe and the DFP is promising as a molecular tool to investigate the production and dynamics of HClO and HSO3- in the complex interaction networks of the living system.