Pyrophosphate ion-responsive alginate hydrogel as an effective fluorescent sensing platform for alkaline phosphatase detection

A pyrophosphate ion (PPi)-responsive alginate hydrogel was fabricated by using Cu2+ as a crosslinker. Benefiting from the ultrahigh affinity of Cu2+ to PPi, which can discriminate PPi from phosphate ions and other anions, the incorporation of carbon dots enables the alginate hydrogel to be an effective fluorescent sensing platform for the detection of alkaline phosphatase.