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Fluorescent Probes for Biosensing and Cell Imaging

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensing and Imaging".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 26 February 2026 | Viewed by 431

Special Issue Editors

Development Center for Eco-Material and Eco-Chemistry, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: fluorescent probe; biosensing; cell imaging
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Guest Editor
Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: fluorescent nanomaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry and Department of Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: carbon dots; microscopic image
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over recent decades, the enormous growth in the diversity of artificially synthesized fluorescent probes has greatly promoted the development of cell biology. For imaging different cellular structures, a series of molecular probes have been designed to target cytoskeletal proteins, mitochondrion, lysosome, peroxisome, ER, Golgi apparatus, cell nucleus, lipid droplet, and plasma membrane. Typically, the fluorescent probes can serve as highly sensitive indicators to detect the intrinsically non-fluorescent species and parameters of cells, such as metal ions, glutathione, reactive oxygen species (ROS), adenosine triphosphate (ATP), pH value, membrane potentials, and so on. Nonetheless, the demand for high-quality fluorescent probes that have a high quantum yield, near-infrared emission, and high selectivity and sensitivity and are biocompatible, easy to use, and especially for super-resolution imaging is ever increasing. Therefore, this Special Issue “Fluorescent Probes for Biosensing and Cell Imaging” focuses on the recent advances in the production of novel cell probes including small molecule dyes, fluorescent antibodies, and fluorescent nanomaterials (inorganic QDs, carbon dots, fluorescent metal nanoclusters, fluorescent dye-loaded NPs). We invite submissions of research that help to advance the field of fluorescent probe technology and its application for the microscopic image analysis of biomarkers.

Dr. Jian Xu
Dr. Jia Chen
Dr. Yonglei Chen
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • fluorescent probe
  • biosensing
  • cell imaging
  • cellular structure
  • small molecule dye
  • fluorescent antibody
  • fluorescent nanomaterial
  • microscopic image
  • biomarker

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

25 pages, 3734 KB  
Review
Application of Quantum Dots in Chinese Herbal Medicines: Advances in Detection, Pollutant Degradation, and Pharmacological Enhancement
by Delai Zhou, Fude Yang, Jian Xu and Fankui Zeng
Sensors 2025, 25(23), 7161; https://doi.org/10.3390/s25237161 - 24 Nov 2025
Viewed by 313
Abstract
Quantum dots (QDs) are a class of nanomaterials with unique fluorescent properties that have gained significant attention in the research of Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs). Due to their exceptional optical characteristics, stability, biocompatibility, and other advantages, QDs are increasingly utilized in CHM studies. [...] Read more.
Quantum dots (QDs) are a class of nanomaterials with unique fluorescent properties that have gained significant attention in the research of Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs). Due to their exceptional optical characteristics, stability, biocompatibility, and other advantages, QDs are increasingly utilized in CHM studies. This review explores the diverse applications of QDs, including their use in detecting active ingredients and common exogenous pollutants in CHMs, as well as in assessing the degradation of such pollutants in both CHMs and their growing environments. Furthermore, the paper discusses the potential of QDs synthesized from CHMs as tools for analyzing other substances and modulating their pharmacological effects. The review also highlights the preparation methods, detection principles, and specific research strategies related to QDs. Integrating QDs into CHM research is poised to drive the modernization and internationalization of the CHM industry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fluorescent Probes for Biosensing and Cell Imaging)
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