BSA Capped gold Nanoclusters Modulated by Copper ion for Sensitive and Selective Detection of Histidine in Biological Fluid

This research proposed a sample and environmentally sustainable technique for the synthesis of bovine serum albumin capped gold nanoclusters (BSA−AuNCs) with outstanding fluorescence. The synthesized BSA−AuNCs were investigated using various ways before being combined with Cu2+ to produce a fluorescent switch probe (BSA−AuNCs−Cu2+) for histidine determination. After adding Cu2+, the fluorescence of the BSA−AuNCs was quenched, the fluorescence intensity was enhanced after adding histidine due to good coordination between Cu2+ and histidine. The significant chelation of histidine with Cu2+ demonstrated the viability of developing a selective “switch on” probe for histidine detecting over other amino acids. Unlike existing fluorescent nanomaterial−based approaches for detecting histidine, this study promises good selectivity, high efficiency, and the avoiding of chemical solvents. The designed BSA−AuNCs−Cu2+ fluorescent probe demonstrated an acceptable linear detection range of 0 to 240 µM under optimum circumstances, with a detection limit of 0.9 µM. The BSA−AuNCs−Cu2+ system was investigated in rat serum and human urine, with recoveries ranging from 97.2 to 108.2%, demonstrating its potential applicability for histidine detection with favorable results.