A near infrared ratiometric fluorescent probe with aggregation induced emission (AIE) characteristics for hydrazine detection in vitro and in vivo

Hydrazine (N2H4) is widely used in agriculture and chemical industry because of its alkalinity and reducibility. However, inhalation of excessive hydrazine can cause extremely damage to human health. Herein, a near infrared ratiometric fluorescent probe PBT with aggregation induced emission (AIE) characteristics for hydrazine detection was reported. The probe PBT represents desirable characteristics including near-infrared (NIR), ratiometric detection, high selectivity, low detection limit (0.11 nM) as well as large Stokes shift (200 nm). Significantly, the probe PBT can be applied to detecting hydrazine vapor and imaging hydrazine in HepG2 cells and zebrafish.