Carbazole–dansyl conjugate for latent fingerprint visualization and on-site detection of date rape drugs

An imino-linked dansyl–carbazole molecular system, DASH, is designed and synthesized. This system (DASH) is rationalized in such a way that it works as a suitable template for the detection of date rape drugs, i.e. gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) and gamma-valerolactone (GVL), in addition to latent fingerprint detection. Both rape drug and latent fingerprint detection are important aspects of drug abuse-related crimes in forensic analysis. There are many reports where both applications have been independently well explored. However, there is no fluorescent system so far that has been reported for dual application. The present study reports the dual application of the molecular system DASH, which simultaneously demonstrates on-site detection of date rape drugs in the solid state as well as latent fingerprint detection on different surfaces. The biocompatibility of DASH is proved utilizing cell viability assay and DNA damage analysis.