Colorimetric detection of spermine and spermidine by zincon in aqueous solution

[Display omitted] •Zincon exhibited a colorimetric response to spermine and spermidine in aqueous solution.•It could detect spermine and spermidine by color changes from yellow to purple and dark brown, respectively.•The detection limits for spermine and spermidine were 25.1 and 30.7 nM, respectively. The anionic organic dye, zincon, was found to be a colorimetric probe for spermine and spermidine at pH 4.0 in pure aqueous solution through its aggregation by electrostatic interactions with them. The addition of spermine and spermidine led to bathochromic shifts with color changes from yellow to purple and dark brown, respectively, while other amines and basic amino acids induced no or minimal spectral and color changes. From Job’s plot and titration experiments, zincon interacted with spermine (+4 charges) and spermidine (+3 charges) in 4:1 and 3:1 stoichiometric ratios, respectively, indicating that each positive charge was bound to one zincon molecule. The detection limits were determined to be 25.1 for spermine and 30.7 nM for spermidine, which were sufficient below the critical concentration for cancer diagnosis. The results indicated that zincon can be a good candidate for simple, convenient colorimetric detection of spermine and spermidine in aqueous solution.