A novel rhodamine–tryptamine conjugate–based fluorescent and chromogenic chemosensor (RTS) for detection of Hg2+ present in water was reported. After gradual addition of Hg2+ in aqueous methanol solution of RTS, a strong orange fluorescence and deep-pink coloration were observed. The probe showed high selectivity towards Hg2+ compared to other competitive metal ions. The 1:1 binding stoichiometry between RTS and Hg2+ was established by Job’s plot analysis and mass spectroscopy. Initial studies showed that the synthesized probe RTS possessed fair non-toxicity and effectively passed through cell walls of model cell systems, viz., human neuroblastoma (SHSY5Y) cells and cervical cells (HeLa) to detect intercellular Hg2+ ions, signifying its utility in biological system. The limit of detection (LOD) was found to be 2.1 nM or 0.42 ppb by fluorescence titration. Additionally, the potential relevance of synthesized chemosensor for detecting Hg2+ ions in environmental water samples has been demonstrated.
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