CpRh-Based Indicator-Displacement Assays for the Identification of Amino Sugars and Aminoglycosides

Indicator‐displacement assays based on the organometallic complex [{Cp*RhCl2}2] (Cp*=pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) and the dye gallocyanine were used to sense amino sugars and aminoglycosides in buffered aqueous solution by conducting UV‐visible spectroscopy. The data of three assays at pH 7.0, 8.0, and 9.0 were sufficient to distinguish between the amino sugars galactosamine, glucosamine, mannosamine and the aminoglycosides kanamycin A, kanamycin B, amikacin, apramycin, paromomycin, and streptomycin. Furthermore, the assays were used to characterize mixtures of aminoglycosides and obtain quantitative information about the respective analytes. The colorimetric sensing of amino sugars and aminoglycosides in aqueous solution is possible by using indicator‐displacement assays, which are based on an organometallic Cp*Rh complex and a commercially available dye (see scheme: L=donor group).