A colorimetric and fluorescent dual-readout probe based on red emission carbon dots for nitrite detection in meat products.

• A novel fluorescent probe based on red emission carbon dots was fabricated. • It was applied colorimetric and fluorometric dual-mode detection of nitrite. • It had a high sensitivity and a low detection limit. • It was successfully applied in detecting nitrite in meat products with satisfactory recoveries. • This dual-mode probe presented great advantages for detection of nitrite in food samples. Nitrite (NO 2 –) is widely present in the human environment and accurate, sensitive and selective detecting of nitrite is of vital significance for food safety and water quality. Herein, a novel red emission carbon dots (r-CDs) fluorescent probe was fabricated for dual-mode detection of nitrite, which was capable of both convenient colorimetric analysis and accurate fluorometric detection. When NO 2 – is added to the rose-red r-CDs solution, NO 2 – interacts with the amino groups which on the surface of r-CDs to form diazotized substance, resulting in that the colorimetric color of r-CDs solution realizes the transition from rose red to light purple, and the red fluorescence is gradually quenched. The detection limits of colorimetric and fluorescence for NO 2 – were 0.193 μM and 0.149 μM, respectively. Furthermore, the dual-readout probe revealed satisfactory recovery and reliability when analyzing the concentration of NO 2 – in ham and bacon samples.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]