Fluorescent boronic acid-modified polymer nanoparticles for enantioselective monosaccharide detection

Abstract

We report the fabrication of new fluorescent boronic acid-modified polyacrylonitrile (B-PAN) nanoparticles for an enantioselective monosaccharide sensor. Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanoparticles of 50 nm diameter were synthesized by radical polymerization. After boronic acid modification, the B-PAN nanoparticles showed enhanced fluorescence due to a photo-induced electron transfer mechanism. The B-PAN nanoparticles enabled molecular recognition in aqueous solution owing to covalent bonds with diol-containing compounds, resulting in application for enantiomer detection of monosaccharides. The fluorescence intensity changed when B-PAN nanoparticles interacted with the enantiomers of monosaccharides, including D-/L-glucose, D-/L-galactose, and D-/L-fructose. The B-PAN nanoparticles provide a new direction for the development of enantioselective monosaccharide sensors and could be subsequently expanded to a platform of versatile fluorescence sensors.