Biomedical application of aggregation-induced emission luminogen-based fluorescent sensors

Fluorescent biosensors are powerful analytical tools that have been widely employed in a range of in vitro and in vivo biomedical applications. However, traditional fluorophores exhibit aggregation-caused quenching (ACQs) effects that hinder their use in the development of more advanced fluorescent biosensors. The discovery by Prof. Ben Zhong Tang of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) luminogen (AIEgen) that exhibit effects opposite to those of fluorophores impacted by ACQ provides a range of unique opportunities for the design of novel “turn-on” biosensors. These AIEgens have thus attracted extensive interest from researchers seeking to leverage their properties to produce more effective biosensing molecules, biosensing strategies, and associated biomedical applications. A wide array of AIEgens with unique structures, functional groups, optical properties, and applications have been developed in recent years. In the present review, we provide a comprehensive overview of recent advances in the field of AIEgen-based fluorescent biosensor design and discuss the future clinical prospects of these molecules. Through these discussions, we hope to provide a strong evidence-based foundation for further efforts aimed at producing increasingly advanced AIEgen-based fluorescent biosensors. •The advantages of AIEgens in fluorescent biosensors has been summarized.•AIEgen-based fluorescent biosensors in sensing various biological molecules and biological processes are summarized.•The challenges and future outlook of AIEgens-based fluorescent biosensors in nanomedicine are also discussed.