Inorganic Chemistry
Article
ppm, relative to tetramethylsilane Si(CH3)4. Absorption spectra were
recorded at 25 °C using a Perkin-Elmer model Lambda 2S UV/vis
spectrometer. Emission spectra were recorded on a Perkin−Elmer
LS45 fluorescence spectrometer. Elemental analysis for carbon,
nitrogen, and hydrogen was carried out using a vario MACRO
(Elemental Analysensysteme, Germany) in the Laboratory Center of
the Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Korea.
Electrospray ionization mass spectra were collected on a Thermo
Finnigan (San Jose, CA, USA) LCQ@ Advantage MAX quadrupole
ion trap instrument by infusing samples directly into the source using a
manual method. Spray voltage was set at 4.2 kV, and the capillary
temperature was at 80 °C.
Synthesis of o-Phenolsalicylimine (PSI). A solution of 2-
hydroxyaniline (1.42 g, 13 mmol) in absolute ethanol was added to a
solution containing 2-hydroxyl-benzaldehyde (1.59 g, 13 mmol) in
ethanol. The mixture was refluxed for 1 h under nitrogen. The solution
was then cooled to room temperature, and the solvent was evaporated.
The orange product was recrystallized from ethanol. The yield of PSI
was 91%. 1H NMR (methanol-d4, 400 MHz) δ: 8.88 (s, 1H), 7.49 (d,
1H), 7.36 (t, 1H), 7.31 (d, 1H), 7.12 (t, 1H), 6.92 (m, 4H). 13C NMR
(DMSO-d6, 100 MHz): δ 161.73, 160.77, 151.18, 134.95, 132.89,
132.37, 128.14, 119.64, 119.60, 119.54, 118.79, 116.74, 116.54
(Supporting Information, Figure S1). FAB MS m/z (M+): calcd,
213.23; found, 213.22. Anal. Calcd for C13H11NO2 (213.23): C, 73.23;
H, 5.20; N, 6.57. Found: C, 73.22; H, 5.22; N, 6.66.
Figure 1. Chemical structures of the receptor PSI and a 1:1 complex of
PSI and Al3+ in CH3OH:H2O.
First, the fluorescence response behavior of PSI was
examined upon treatment with various metal ions in
methanol−water (1:1, v/v) (Figure 2a). PSI alone showed no
Optical Detection of Al3+ Using PSI. The receptor (1.0 μM) was
mixed with different concentrations of metal ions in CH3OH:H2O
(1:1, v/v) in a 1 cm cell. Solutions of metal ions were prepared using
nitrate salts. After equilibrium at ambient temperature for 1 min,
absorption and fluorescence spectra of the mixtures were measured.
Fluorescence spectra were measured at an excitation wavelength of
411 nm.
Methods for Cell Imaging. HeLa cell line (CCL-2, ATCC,
Manassas, VA) was cultured in DMEM (Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle
Medium, Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA) supplemented with 100 units/mL
penicillin (SIGMA), 100 mg/mL streptomycin (SIGMA), and 10%
fetal bovine serum (SIGMA) at 37 °C in a humidified incubator. Cells
were seeded onto an 18 mm × 8 mm cover glass (Marienfeld, Lauda-
Koenigshofen, Germany) at a density of 2 × 105 cells. Cells were then
incubated with various concentrations (0.1−100 μM) of Al(NO3)3 at
37 °C for 4 h. After washing with PBS three times to remove the
remaining Al(NO3)3, the cells were then incubated with 10 μM PSI for
30 min at room temperature. The incubated cells were washed with
PBS and mounted onto a glass slide with ClearMount aqueous mount-
ing medium (Invitrogen). Fluorescent images of the mounted cells
were obtained using a confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM
LSM510, Carl Zeiss) with 480 nm excitation and 520 nm emission
filters at various magnifications (from 200× to 400×).
To fluorescently visualize apoptosis in cells previously exposed to
Al(NO3)3, a TACS 2 TdT-Fluor in situ apoptosis detection kit
(Trevigen, Gaithersburg, MD) was used.12 Cells were incubated and
exposed to Al(NO3)3 as described above. Cells were immersed in TdT
buffer (30 mM Trizma base, pH 7.2, 140 mM sodium cacodylate,
1 mM cobalt chloride). TdT labeling solution was then added to cells
as suggested by the manufacturer. Cells were then incubated at 37 °C
for 60 min. The reaction was terminated by transferring cells to TdT
stop buffer (300 mM sodium chloride, 30 mM sodium citrate) for
5 min at room temperature. Cells were rinsed with distilled deionized
water (DDW) and incubated with Strep-Fluor solution for 20 min at
room temperature. To fluorescently visualize necrosis in cells, the cells
previously exposed to Al(NO3)3 were rinsed with DDW and 1.5 μM
propidium iodide (Invitrogen) was added for 15 min. After rinsing
with PBS buffer and DDW, cells were prepared for imaging.
Figure 2. (a) Fluorescence spectra of PSI (1 μM) before and after
addition of metal salts (12 μM) of Ag+, Ca2+, Cd2+, Co2+, Cr3+, Cu2+,
Fe3+, Ga3+, Hg2+, In3+, K+, Mg2+, Mn2+, Na+, Ni2+, Pb2+, and Zn2+ in
CH3OH:H2O (1:1). (b) Bar graph shows the relative emission
intensity of PSI at 510 nm upon treatment with various metal ions.
significant emission after excitation at 411 nm. However, upon
addition of Al3+, the fluorescence intensity of PSI increased by a
factor of 1000 at a wavelength of 510 nm. In contrast, addition
of other relevant metal ions, such as Na+, Ag+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+,
Hg2+, Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+, Pb2+, Cr3+, Fe3+, and
In3+, caused almost no fluorescence increase. Ga3+, which
belongs to the same group on the periodic table, also generated
a similar fluorescence enhancement centered at 545 nm, but the
intensity was significantly lower than with Al3+ under the same
conditions. It seems that the fluorescence enhancement was
derived from the more widespread formation of the π-conjuga-
tion system in PSI upon metal binding, and the fluorescence
was sensitive to specific metal ions. The selectivity for Al3+ with
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
■
The Schiff base probe PSI was synthesized by coupling of
2-hydroxylbenzaldehyde and 2-aminophenol with 91% yield in
ethanol (Figure 1 and details in the Experimental Section).
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dx.doi.org/10.1021/ic2024583 | Inorg. Chem. 2012, 51, 3597−3602