biostudies-literatureYan YNational Basic Research Program of ChinaNatural Science Foundation of Anhui ProvinceNational Natural Science Foundation of China27652-27658https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC9070855biostudies-literatureUnknown9(47)Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) is a biologically relevant molecule that has been newly identified as a gasotransmitter and is also a toxic gaseous pollutant. In this study, we report on a metal complex fluorescent probe to achieve the sensitive detection of H₂S in a fluorescent "turn-on" mode. The probe bears a dansyl fluorophore with multidentate ligands for coordination with copper ions. The fluorescent "turn-on" mode is facilitated by the strong bonding between H₂S and the Cu(ii) ions to form insoluble copper sulfide, which leads to the release of a strongly fluorescent product. The H₂S limit of detection (LOD) for the proposed probe is estimated to be 11 nM in the aqueous solution, and the utilization of the probe is demonstrated for detecting H₂S in actual lake and mineral water samples with good reproducibility. Furthermore, we designed detector vials and presented their successful application for the visual detection of gaseous H₂S.RSC advancesA turn-on fluorescent probe with a dansyl fluorophore for hydrogen sulfide sensing.PMC90708551808085QB44KJ2018A04162017YFA020700021804100Zheng YWang SChen LLiu RYan YfalseA turn-on fluorescent probe with a dansyl fluorophore for hydrogen sulfide sensing.Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) is a biologically relevant molecule that has been newly identified as a gasotransmitter and is also a toxic gaseous pollutant. In this study, we report on a metal complex fluorescent probe to achieve the sensitive detection of H₂S in a fluorescent "turn-on" mode. The probe bears a dansyl fluorophore with multidentate ligands for coordination with copper ions. The fluorescent "turn-on" mode is facilitated by the strong bonding between H₂S and the Cu(ii) ions to form insoluble copper sulfide, which leads to the release of a strongly fluorescent product. The H₂S limit of detection (LOD) for the proposed probe is estimated to be 11 nM in the aqueous solution, and the utilization of the probe is demonstrated for detecting H₂S in actual lake and mineral water samples with good reproducibility. Furthermore, we designed detector vials and presented their successful application for the visual detection of gaseous H₂S.2019-01-01T00:00:00Z2019 Aug2025-04-04T09:09:43.569Z2025-04-04T09:09:43.569ZS-EPMC90708553552921310.1039/c9ra04790e