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ABSTRACT
Imidazo[1,2-a] pyridine-based two probes with different substituents containing oxime and hydroxyl functional groups were synthesised and evaluated for detection of tabun nerve agent simulant diethylcyanophosphonate (DCNP). The nucleophile hydroxyl group present on both the probes can be rapidly phosphorylated by DCNP through a nucleophilic substitution reaction. The probes were fluorescent and on reacting with DCNP underwent fluorescence OFF, which can be visualised under a UV lamp at 365 nm wavelength. The limit of detection for probes 1 and 2 was calculated as 0.66 μM and 0.54 μM, respectively. The mechanism of detection was studied using spectroscopic techniques revealed that the hydroxyl group is involved in the reaction with DCNP. The probes were found selective for the detection of DCNP in presence of other electrophilic interfering agents. Results were obtained in aqueous media and probes can be used directly for the rapid and sensitive detection of DCNP in water without any pretreatment.
Acknowledgments
Muskan Gori and Ashima Thakur are thankful to the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals, and fertilisers for providing fellowship. Central Instrumental Facility NIPER-R is also thankful for the analysis of samples. NIPER-R/Communication/121.
Availability of data and material
Will be provided on request.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Authors’ contributions
Muskan Gori and Ashima Thakur: Synthesized molecules, data collection, analysis, and the first draft of manuscript preparation.
Abha Sharma: Conceptualization, design, analysis, and interpretation of results, and finalization of the manuscript.
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/03067319.2022.2085042