Versatile Near-Infrared Super-Resolution Imaging of Amyloid Fibrils with the Fluorogenic Probe CRANAD-2

CRANAD-2 is a fluorogenic curcumin derivative used for near-infrared detection and imaging in vivo of amyloid aggregates, which are involved in neurodegenerative diseases. We explore the performance of CRANAD-2 in two super-resolution imaging techniques, namely stimulated emission depletion (STED) and single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM), with markedly different fluorophore requirements. By conveniently adapting the concentration of CRANAD-2, which transiently binds to amyloid fibrils, we show that it performs well in both techniques, achieving a resolution in the range of 45–55 nm. Correlation of SMLM with atomic force microscopy (AFM) validates the resolution of fine features in the reconstructed super-resolved image. The good performance and versatility of CRANAD-2 provides a powerful tool for near-infrared nanoscopic imaging of amyloids in vitro and in vivo.     

含胺基功能性单体的聚合研究——ⅩⅦ.N-(4-二甲氨基苯基)马来酰亚胺的聚合及其光化学行为

关于在同一分子中既含有给电子生色基团又含有受电子碳碳双键基的单体的合成、聚合及它们的光化学行为,我们所报道过的多是一元不饱和羧酸的衍生物。本文报道含有给电子生色基因的1,2-不饱和二元羧酸类单体N-(4-二甲氨基苯基)马来酰亚胺(DMAPMI)的合成、聚合及其光化学行为。     

Revisit of a series of ICT fluorophores: skeletal characterization,structural modification,and spectroscopic behavior

We have revisited the synthesis of a series of ICT fluorophores, which were reported to have a core structure of 8-oxo-8H-acenaphtho[1,2-b]pyrrol-9-carbonitrile. However, based on the 2D NMR and X-ray diffraction analysis, their core structure was corrected as 1-oxo-1H-phenalene-2,3-dicarbonitrile (1). Compound 1 shows a highly electron-deficient nature and can easily undergo oxidative S_NAr^H reaction on the naphthyl ring to produce a series of novel ICT fluorophores. The regioselectivity of this substitution reaction was studied by introduction of representative nucleophiles. Moreover, due to the strong rigidity and efficient ICT nature, the obtained fluorescent dyes display very good spectroscopic properties even in an aqueous environment.     

Ultrafast Fluorescence Spectroscopy via Upconversion and Its Applications in Biophysics

In this review, the experimental set-up and functional characteristics of single-wavelength and broad-band femtosecond upconversion spectrophotofluorometers developed in our laboratory are described. We discuss applications of this technique to biophysical problems, such as ultrafast fluorescence quenching and solvation dynamics of tryptophan, peptides, proteins, reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH), and nucleic acids. In the tryptophan dynamics field, especially for proteins, two types of solvation dynamics on different time scales have been well explored: ~1 ps for bulk water, and tens of picoseconds for “biological water”, a term that combines effects of water and macromolecule dynamics. In addition, some proteins also show quasi-static self-quenching (QSSQ) phenomena. Interestingly, in our more recent work, we also find that similar mixtures of quenching and solvation dynamics occur for the metabolic cofactor NADH. In this review, we add a brief overview of the emerging development of fluorescent RNA aptamers and their potential application to live cell imaging, while noting how ultrafast measurement may speed their optimization.     

基于荧光强度比值法可用于现场测量的低成本聚合物光纤温度传感器

基于荧光强度比值法,设计了一种使用两种荧光染料的光纤温度传感器.实验中,罗丹明B和罗丹明110分别为对温度敏感和对温度不敏感的荧光传感物质,利用聚合物光纤来传导激发光及接收荧光.由于两种染料的荧光谱峰相距60 nm,因此容易将二者对应的荧光谱分开.通过确定能代表两种染料的最优荧光光谱范围,获得具有良好线性度的温度-荧光强度标定曲线.实验研究了不同浓度的荧光染料对标定曲线的影响,当染料浓度为0.3 g/L时,可获得0.28℃的最小均方误差及0.0128/℃的灵敏度.此外,该传感器还具备一定的抗光源扰动和抗荧光染料漂白的能力.     

A Simple and Strong Electron‐Deficient 5,6‐Dicyano[2,1,3]benzothiadiazole‐Cored Donor‐Acceptor‐Donor Compound for Efficient Near Infrared Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence

Despite the success of thermally activated delayed fluorescent (TADF) materials in steering the next generation of organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs), effective near infrared (NIR) TADF emitters are still very rare. Here, we present a simple and extremely high electron‐deficient compound, 5,6‐dicyano[2,1,3]benzothiadiazole (CNBz), as a strong electron‐accepting unit to develop a sufficiently strong donor‐acceptor (D?A) interaction for NIR emission. End‐capping with the electron‐donating triphenylamine (TPA) unit created an effective D?A?D type system, giving rise to an efficient NIR TADF emissive molecule (λ_em=750 nm) with a very small ΔE_ST of 0.06 eV. The electroluminescent device using this NIR TADF emitter exhibited an excellent performance with a high maximum radiance of 10020 mW Sr^?1 m^?2, a maximum EQE of 6.57% and a peak wavelength of 712 nm.     

N-甲基丙烯酰-N′-嘧啶基哌嗪及其聚合物的荧光光谱研究

我们曾报道过N-丙烯酰-N′-苯基哌嗪(APP)的合成、聚合、荧光性质及其单独或与过氧化物构成氧化还原体系以引发烯类单体聚合的研究。由于APP是分子中含有给电子生色基团和缺电子双键的丙烯酸类衍生物,其荧光表现有结构自猝灭现象并且聚合物的荧光也能被其它缺电子烯类单体如丙烯腈所淬灭。对于分子中含有多个氮原子的芳杂环叔胺丙烯酸类单体的研究,文献报道较少。本文合成了新的功能性单体N-甲基丙烯酰-N′-嘧啶基哌嗪(MPMP),并观察了单体及其聚合物溶液的荧光光谱。     

基于三苯胺的荧光探针设计、合成与应用研究进展

螺旋桨结构的三苯胺荧光团既能作为强的电子供体,又能作为潜在的聚集诱导发光(AIE)骨架.同时,三苯胺衍生物很容易通过简单的反应进行结构修饰,如醛基、氨基、硼酸基、卤素、乙炔基等取代的三苯胺能够发生缩合反应或偶联反应等,进一步功能化.因此,功能性三苯胺类化合物被广泛用于太阳能电池、荧光染料、固态发光材料和荧光探针的分子设...     

Environment‐sensitive Fluorescent Turn‐on Chemical Probe for the Specific Detection of O‐Methylguanine‐DNA Methyltransferase (MGMT) in Living Cells

MGMT protein, which has been associated with resistance to antitumor alkylation drugs for many patients, is a very useful prognostic marker to provide a guide for therapeutic decisions. Considering the large number of cellular samples that have to be handled daily at the hospitals, it is thus important to develop a rapid and simple analytical method to distinguish MGMT activity in different types of cells. In this paper, we describe a MGMT‐activated fluorescence turn‐on probe for the rapid no‐wash imaging of MGMT in living cells. The probe consists of a specific MGMT suicide pseudosubstrate, O⁶‐benzyl‐guanine and an environment‐sensitive fluorophore, SBD. In the presence of MGMT, the enzyme transfers SBD to the protein active site where the hydrophobic surrounding causes the fluorophore to exhibit more than 50‐fold fluorescence enhancement. With this probe, bright fluorescence was observed for MGMT‐positive, Hela S3 and MCF‐7 cells, while MGMT‐deficient CHO cells displayed no fluorescence. We believe that this fluorescence activation probe design can also be extended to detect other transferases, for which there are still no effective methods to image them in living cells.