Programmable material can help track illness, pollutants, and more.

In a development that could advance everything from medical imaging to environmental sensing, researchers at the University of Missouri have engineered ultrabright, programmable chemical sheets designed to bind with specific molecules – offering a customizable tool for detecting biological markers, pollutants, and other trace materials.

From highlighter dyes in lab tests to glowing markers in medical scans, fluorescent molecules – known as fluorophores – have long enabled scientists to see what the naked eye cannot.

Capable of tracking diseases, tagging cells, analyzing chemicals, and detecting pollutants – often at concentrations invisible to even the most advanced imaging tools – these glowing compounds have become indispensable in everything from biomedical research and clinical diagnostics to environmental testing and forensic science.

Yet for all their utility, conventional fluorophores have notable drawbacks – many fade under prolonged exposure to light, lack sufficient brightness, or perform inconsistently in complex biological or environmental settings.

Their rigid chemical structures also make them difficult to adapt for specific tasks, limiting their effectiveness in more advanced or highly sensitive applications.

Seeking to overcome these limitations, researchers in the University of Missouri's chemistry department developed a new class of fluorescent materials that offer both exceptional brightness and tunable functionality – programmable chemical platforms known as fluorescent polyionic nanoclays.

"They possess a high degree of functionality, meaning we can control how many and what kinds of fluorescent molecules are attached to the surfaces of these nanoclays," said Gary Baker, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Missouri. "This provides a versatile platform where the optical and physicochemical properties can be precisely tuned by selecting and attaching appropriate molecules. This ready-for-use customization is the hallmark of these materials, enabling a wide array of applications across different fields."

Built from thin layers of engineered silicates, the nanoclay incorporates densely charged molecular chains that attract and hold fluorescent compounds in place. With multiple positive or negative charges distributed across their surface, they create a kind of chemical "Velcro" that enables precise attachment and responsiveness – hence the term polyionic.

To create these programmable sheets, the researchers used two methods to attach fluorescent compounds to the clay's surface – either incorporating them directly during formation or adding them afterward using reactive chemical linkers.

This flexibility allowed the team to fine-tune how the material behaves: choosing how brightly it glows, how it interacts with its surroundings, and what kinds of molecules it is able to detect.

One formulation reached a brightness level on par with the most luminous fluorescent materials ever reported.

"Normalized for volume, our fluorescently tagged clays exhibit 7,000 brightness units, matching the highest levels ever reported for a fluorescent material," Baker said. "The increased brightness makes these materials highly useful for sensitive optical detection methods. This translates to enhanced analytical signals and improved detection, unlocking new possibilities for advanced sensors and contrast agents in medical imaging."

In early lab tests, the material also showed low toxicity in mouse cells – a promising sign for its potential use in biomedical settings.

Similarly, its usefulness can extend beyond the body, as that same adaptability makes it well-suited for sensing pollutants, monitoring water quality, and detecting chemical changes in industrial settings.

With its customizable design, exceptional brightness, and low toxicity, the team sees this platform as a springboard for future technologies – ranging from next-generation diagnostic tools and biosensors to advanced light-based therapies, environmental monitors, and even solar energy applications.

Future versions could be equipped with biological tags – such as antibodies, DNA strands, or metal-binding molecules – enabling them to detect specific targets in real time and deliver treatments or trigger responses at the molecular level.