Centre for Health Technologies, School of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, 2007, Australia.
Institute for NanoScale Science and Technology, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, 5042, Australia.
Top Curr Chem (Cham). 2021 Feb 5;379(2):9. doi: 10.1007/s41061-020-00322-6.
The development of fluorescent gels, if not the current focus, is at the center of recent efforts devoted to the invention of a new generation of gels. Fluorescent gels have numerous properties that are intrinsic to the gel structure, with additional light-emitting properties making them attractive for different applications. This review focuses on current studies associated with the development of fluorescent gels using aggregation-induced emission fluorophores (AIEgens) to ultimately suggest new directions for future research. Here, we discuss major drawbacks of the methodologies used frequently for the fabrication of fluorescent gels using traditional fluorophores compared to those using AIEgens. The fabrication strategies to develop AIE-based fluorescent gels, including physical mixing, soaking, self-assembly, noncovalent interactions, and permanent chemical reactions, are discussed thoroughly. New and recent findings on developing AIE-active gels are explained. Specifically, physically prepared AIE-based gels including supramolecular, ionic, and chemically prepared AIE-based gels are discussed. In addition, the intrinsic fluorescent properties of natural gels, known as clustering-triggered fluorescent gel, and new and recent relevant findings published in peer-reviewed journals are explained. This review also revealed the biomedical applications of AIE-based fluorescent hydrogels including drug delivery, biosensors, bioimaging, and tissue engineering. In conclusion, the current research situation and future directions are identified.
荧光凝胶的发展，如果不是当前的焦点，也是最近致力于发明新一代凝胶的努力的核心。荧光凝胶具有许多固有于凝胶结构的性质，加上额外的发光性质，使它们在不同的应用中具有吸引力。本综述重点介绍了使用聚集诱导发射荧光团（AIEgens）开发荧光凝胶的当前研究，最终为未来的研究提出了新的方向。在这里，我们讨论了与使用传统荧光团相比，使用 AIEgens 制造荧光凝胶的常用方法的主要缺点。我们还详细讨论了基于 AIE 的荧光凝胶的制造策略，包括物理混合、浸泡、自组装、非共价相互作用和永久化学反应。解释了关于开发基于 AIE 的活性凝胶的新发现和最新发现。具体来说，讨论了物理制备的基于 AIE 的凝胶，包括超分子、离子和化学制备的基于 AIE 的凝胶。此外，还解释了天然凝胶的固有荧光性质，即聚集触发荧光凝胶，以及在同行评议期刊上发表的新的和最近的相关发现。本综述还揭示了基于 AIE 的荧光水凝胶在药物输送、生物传感器、生物成像和组织工程等方面的生物医学应用。总之，确定了当前的研究现状和未来的方向。
