Work

Three in one fluorescent sensing and imaging of chemical warfare agents

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Chemical warfare agents (CWAs) pose severe global threats due to their historical role in mass casualties and ongoing misuse, particularly blister, nerve, and blood agents. To address the urgent need for field-deployable detection tools, we developed TrioAlert , the first fluorescent sensor capable of simultaneously detecting the blister agent sulfur mustard, the G-type nerve agent sarin and the blood agent cyanide. The sensor utilizes an imidazole group to recognize sulfur mustard and sarin, and an α,β-unsaturated ketone to recognize cyanide. TrioAlert demonstrates a rapid response (within 90 s), high sensitivity (limit of detection: 0.32 μM sulfur mustard, 0.28 μM sarin, 0.76 μM cyanide) and distinct fluorescence and color changes. Furthermore, TrioAlert -loaded test strips enabled smartphone-based qualitative and quantitative on-site analysis. The sensor also successfully enabled the visualization of all three CWAs in live cells and mouse models, confirming its value for biomedical diagnostics. Our study demonstrates the on-site rapid quantitative detection of high-risk chemical warfare agents, thereby significantly advancing the capability to prevent chemical threats and safeguard national public security.

Source: Nature Communications

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-73175-0