Zhaoyang Ding: College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, People's Republic of China. ORCID
Xilin Dou: College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, People's Republic of China.
Chunfei Wang: Cancer Centre and Centre of Reproduction, Development and Aging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, People's Republic of China.
Gang Feng: Cancer Centre and Centre of Reproduction, Development and Aging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, People's Republic of China.
Jing Xie: College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, People's Republic of China.
Xuanjun Zhang: Cancer Centre and Centre of Reproduction, Development and Aging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau SAR 999078, People's Republic of China.
Intracellular pH plays a significant role in all cell activities. Due to their precise imaging capabilities, fluorescent probes have attracted much attention for the investigation of pH-regulated processes. Detecting intracellular pH values with high throughput is critical for cell research and applications. In this work, hybrid semiconducting polymer dots (Pdots) were developed and characterized and were applied for cell imaging and exclusive ratiometric sensing of intracellular pH values. The reported Pdots were prepared by blending a synthesized block polymer (P) and a semiconducting polymer poly[2-methoxy-5-(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene] (MEHPPV) to construct a fluorescence resonance energy transfer system for ratiometric sensing. Pdots showed many advantages, including high brightness, excellent photostability and biocompatibility, giving the pH probe high sensitivity and good stability. Our results proved the capability of P-MEHPPV Pdots for the detection of pH in living cells.
