A long wavelength fluorescent probe for biothiols and its application in cell imaging

Abstract

A long wavelength and turn-on fluorescent probe (1) containing the maleimide group as a reactive site was designed and synthesized. A series of sensing studies showed that probe 1 was highly selective and sensitive with fast responses towards bio-thiols over non-thiolated amino acids in DMSO : HEPES = 1 : 1 (v/v, pH 7.4) solution. Furthermore, the detection limit was as low as 0.015 μM. More importantly, the potential application of probe 1 as a biosensor for thiols was demonstrated by employing it in fluorescence imaging of Cys in HepG2 cells.