The beginning of the 21st century was marked by the intensive development of fiber‐optic sensors. New functional materials with excellent sensory properties are required to design such sensors. Fluorescent probes for neutral and charged molecules are constantly developing. However, only a small part of the reported probes was successfully converted into functional sensing polymers and found real‐world applications. A great challenge is to retain the sensing properties of a probe in a polymer matrix. The purpose of this review is to understand how properties of a probe are changed upon incorporation into a polymer and to reveal successful approaches. The review focuses on the use of the naphthalimide‐based probes in the construction of sensing polymers. The literature overview is presented according to the nature of the guest molecules targeted for the quantitative detection: cations, anions, and small organic molecules.

The design of high‐affinity synthetic host–guest complexes is of paramount importance because they are key elements in constructing unprecedented supramolecular assemblies, functional materials, molecular probes, artificial signal transduction events, and interfaces with the biological world. The present review article collects recent achievements in the design of 1 : 1 host–guest complexes with outstanding stabilities, i.e., exceeding 10⁶ M⁻¹. The relationships between the measured thermodynamic constants and the structural parameters of the interacting species are analyzed. The design features of high‐affinity hosts are discussed in light of their binding properties. Different solvents and different types of noncovalent interactions are considered for the stabilization of the complexes. Finally, some hints are provided for the design of future synthetic receptors displaying high affinity and selectivity.

An efficient and green method has been developed for the synthesis of kojic acid derivatives by employing 20 mol% β-cyclodextrin in aqueous media.

Pyrene‐based cyclophanes have been synthesized with the aim to realize a bellows‐type sensing mechanism for the ratiometric detection of nucleotide concentrations in a buffered aqueous solution. The sensing mechanism involves the encapsulation of a nucleobase between two pyrene rings, which affects the monomer‐excimer equilibrium of the receptor in the excited state. The nature of the spacer and its connection pattern to pyrene rings have been varied to achieve high selectivity for ATP. The 1,8‐substituted pyrene‐based cyclophane with the 2,2’‐diaminodiethylamine spacer demonstrates the best selectivity for ATP showing a 50‐fold increase in the monomer‐excimer emission ratio upon saturation with the nucleotide. The receptor can detect ATP within the biological concentrations range over a wide pH range. NMR and spectroscopic studies have revealed the importance of hydrogen bonding and stacking interactions for achieving a required receptor selectivity. The probe has been successfully applied for the real‐time monitoring of creatine kinase activity.