A Versatile Long‐Wavelength‐Absorbing Scaffold for Eu‐Based Responsive Probes

Coumarin‐sensitized, long‐wavelength‐absorbing luminescent Eu^III‐complexes have been synthesized and characterized. The lanthanide binding site consists of a cyclen‐based chelating framework that is attached through a short linker to a 7‐hydroxycoumarin, a 7‐B(OH)₂‐coumarin, a 7‐O‐(4‐pinacolatoboronbenzyl)‐coumarin or a 7‐O‐(4‐methoxybenzyl)‐coumarin. The syntheses are straightforward, use readily available building blocks, and proceed through a small number of high‐yielding steps. The sensitivity of coumarin photophysics to the 7‐substituent enables modulation of the antenna‐absorption properties, and thus the lanthanide excitation spectrum. Reactions of the boronate‐based functionalities (cages) with H₂O₂ yielded the corresponding 7‐hydroxycoumarin species. The same species was produced with peroxynitrite in a ×10⁶–10⁷‐fold faster reaction. Both reactions resulted in the emergence of a strong ≈407 nm excitation band, with concomitant decrease of the 366 nm band of the caged probe. In aqueous solution the methoxybenzyl caged Eu‐complex was quenched by ONOO^?. We have shown that preliminary screening of simple coumarin‐based antennae through UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy is possible as the changes in absorption profile translate with good fidelity to changes in Eu^III‐excitation profile in the fully elaborated complex. Taken together, our results show that the 7‐hydroxycoumarin antenna is a viable scaffold for the construction of turn‐on and ratiometric luminescent probes.     

A PEGylated Fluorescent Turn‐On Sensor for Detecting Fluoride Ions in Totally Aqueous Media and Its Imaging in Live Cells

Owing to the considerable significance of fluoride anions for health and environmental issues, it is of great importance to develop methods that can rapidly, sensitively and selectively detect the fluoride anion in aqueous media and biological samples. Herein, we demonstrate a robust fluorescent turn‐on sensor for detecting the fluoride ion in a totally aqueous solution. In this study, a biocompatible hydrophilic polymer poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) is incorporated into the sensing system to ensure water solubility and to enhance biocompatibility. tert‐Butyldiphenylsilyl (TBDPS) groups were then covalently introduced onto the fluorescein moiety, which effectively quenched the fluorescence of the sensor. Upon addition of fluoride ion, the selective fluoride‐mediated cleavage of the Si? O bond leads to the recovery of the fluorescein moiety, resulting in a dramatic increase in fluorescence intensity under visible light excitation. The sensor is responsive and highly selective for the fluoride anion over other common anions; it also exhibits a very low detection limit of 19 ppb. In addition, this sensor is operative in some real samples such as running water, urine, and serum and can accurately detect fluoride ions in these samples. The cytotoxicity of the sensor was determined to be Grade I toxicity according to United States Pharmacopoeia and ISO 10993‐5, suggesting the very low cytotoxicity of the sensor. Moreover, it was found that the senor could be readily internalized by both HeLa and L929 cells and the sensor could be utilized to track fluoride level changes inside the cells.     

Evaluation of potential cationic probes for the detection of proline and betaine

Osmoregulants are the substances that help plants to tolerate environmental extremes such as salinity and drought. Proline and betaine are two of the most commonly studied osmoregulants. An indirect UV CE method has been developed for simultaneous determination of these osmoregulants. A variety of reported probes and compounds were examined as potential probes for the indirect detection of proline and betaine. Mobility and UV‐absorption properties highlighted sulfanilamide as a potential probe for indirect analysis of proline and betaine. Using 5 mM sulfanilamide at pH 2.2 with UV detection at 254 nm, proline and betaine were separated in less than 15 min. The LODs for proline and betaine were 11.6 and 28.3 μM, respectively. The developed method was successfully applied to quantification of these two osmoregulants in spinach and beetroot samples.     

Different Distributions of Counterions in the Surface Layer of Cationic Surfactant Solutions

We have separately determined the surface tension of pure aqueous solutions of cetyltrimethylammonium chloride and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and their surface potentials by a Kelvin probe system. With the help of Gibbs equation, the surface excess has been determined through approximating the chemical activity of the surfactant by their dilute bulk concentration. In the following, the surface potential—surface excess isotherms were established. Those potential isotherms evidence that cetyltrimethylammonium chloride solution has a higher value compared to that of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide under equal surface excess. This phenomenon is supposed to be owed to the different distributions of chloride and bromide ions within the adsorption layer of the solutions, which can be attributed to the different properties of those two anions.     

o‐Fluorination of Aromatic Azides Yields Improved Azido‐Based Fluorescent Probes for Hydrogen Sulfide: Synthesis,Spectra, and Bioimaging

Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) is an endogenously produced gaseous signaling molecule with multiple biological functions. To visualize the endogenous in situ production of H₂S in real time, new coumarin‐ and boron‐dipyrromethene‐based fluorescent turn‐on probes were developed for fast sensing of H₂S in aqueous buffer and in living cells. Introduction of a fluoro group in the ortho position of the aromatic azide can lead to a greater than twofold increase in the rate of reaction with H₂S. On the basis of o‐fluorinated aromatic azides, fluorescent probes with high sensitivity and selectivity toward H₂S over other biologically relevant species were designed and synthesized. The probes can be used to in situ to visualize exogenous H₂S and D ‐cysteine‐dependent endogenously produced H₂S in living cells, which makes them promising tools for potential applications in H₂S biology.     

Dosimetric gelator probes and their application as sensors

Supramolecular gels formed by the self-assembly of organic molecules are useful in many areas from materials to medicine. Of the different applications, exploitation of gels for the visual detection of analytes is a fairly recent trend in gel chemistry. Most of the gel-based sensors rely on non-covalent interactions between the gelator molecules and the added chemical analytes and therefore, often suffer from less selectivity and long response time. In this context, dosimetric gelator probes are superior to other gel-based sensors with high selectivity and fast response time. Unlike non-covalent binding sites, dosimetric gelators typically contain a reaction centre and undergo a specific chemical reaction selective to an analyte resulting in either formation or rupturing of covalent bonds. In this review, we provide an up-to-date report of various reaction-based gel systems applied for the sensing of analytes. We elaborately discuss the concept, design principles, self-assembly properties, and reaction mechanisms of such gelators. We also highlight the limitations, challenges, and the necessity of further exploration of dosimetric gels in this domain.     

Long-Term,Single-Molecule Imaging of Proteins in Live Cells with Photoregulated Fluxional Fluorophores

Single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) can reveal nanometric details of biological samples, but its high phototoxicity hampers long-term imaging in live specimens. A significant part of this phototoxicity stems from repeated irradiations that are necessary for controlled switching of fluorophores to maintain the sparse labeling of the sample. Lower phototoxicity can be obtained using fluorophores that blink spontaneously, but controlling the density of single-molecule emitters is challenging. We recently developed photoregulated fluxional fluorophores (PFFs) that combine the benefits of spontaneously blinking dyes with photocontrol of emitter density. These dyes, however, were limited to imaging acidic organelles in live cells. Herein, we report a systematic study of PFFs that culminates in probes that are functional at physiological pH and operate at longer wavelengths than their predecessors. Moreover, these probes are compatible with HaloTag labeling, thus enabling timelapse, single-molecule imaging of specific protein targets for exceptionally long times.     

Substituent Effects on the Vibrational Properties of the CN Stretch Mode of Aromatic Nitriles: IR Probes Useful for Time-resolved IR Spectroscopy

Developing ideal IR probes is essential to understand the structure and dynamics of biomolecules with time-resolved IR spectroscopies and imaging techniques. Especially, nitrile (CN) group has recently been proposed to serve as IR probes of the local environment of proteins. Herein, we investigated the effect of a substituent on the vibrational properties of the benzonitrile. The electron-donating and withdrawing character of p-substituent on benzonitrile are expected to modulate the vibrational frequency, molar extinction coefficient, and vibrational lifetime of CN probe. FT-IR revealed the positive correlation between electron-donating character and the molar extinction coefficient of CN stretch mode. Infrared pump-probe (IR-PP) measurements showed that the vibrational lifetime of CN stretch mode exhibits a relatively weak correlation with the electron-donating strength. Among the investigated samples, 4-dimethylamino benzonitrile with the strongest electron-donating strength shows enhanced absorption and extended vibrational lifetime. Utilizing substituent effects will be a practical strategy to improve the performance of the IR probe.     

Triple-Layered Metal-Organic Framework Hybrid for Tandem Response-Driven Enhanced Chemotherapy

The precise release of drugs is essential to improve cancer therapeutic efficacy. In this work, a tandem responsive strategy was developed based on a triple-layered metal-organic framework (MOF) hybrid. The MOF nanoprobe was stepwise fabricated with a telomerase-responsive inner, a pH-sensitive MOF filling and H₂O₂-responsive coordination complex shell of Fe³⁺ and eigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). In the tumor microenvironment, the shell was dissociated by endogenous H₂O₂ and simultaneously produced highly reactive hydroxyl radicals by a Fenton reaction. Meanwhile, the released EGCG could downregulate the expression of P-glycoprotein responsible for drug resistance. After the dissociation of the framework by protons, telomerase could trigger the release of the drug from the DNA duplex on the exposed inner shell. By integrating confined drug release, inhibited efflux pump and chemodynamic therapy, the all-in-one chemotherapy strategy was identified with enhanced therapeutic efficacy in drug-resistant cancer cells.