Development of Two Efficient Dual‐Function Fluorescent Probes for Specific Recognition of Zn2+/H2S

Abstract In this paper, two dual function fluorescent probes P1 and P2 with obvious fluorescence spectrum change were developed for the detection of Zn 2+ and H 2 S. Density functional theory (DFT) was employed to investigate the detection mechanism. A further illustration of the fluorescence quenching mechanism was also studied by 1 H NMR titration and UV‐Vis absorption spectroscopy. Both probes are new compounds containing coumarin structure as fluorophore. They can quantitatively detect Zn 2+ and H 2 S in the concentration range from 0 to 50 μM with excellent selectivity and anti‐interference ability over many metal ions or anions. Most worthy is that probes P1 and P2 have better cell permeability with lower cytotoxicity, which can be used for fluorescence detection in MCF‐7 cells, as well as the detection of exogenous Zn 2+ in organisms.