Selective fluorescence imaging of biomarkers in vivo and in situ for evaluating orthotopic hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) chemotherapyremains agreat challenge due to current imaging agents suffering from the potential interferences of other hydrolases.H erein, we observed that carbamate unit showed ah igh selectivity towardt he HCC-related biomarker carboxylesterase (CE) for evaluation of treatment. An earinfrared two-photon fluorescent probe was developed to not only specially image CE activity in vivo and in situ but also target orthotopic liver tumor after systemic administration. The in vivo signals of the probe correlate well with tumor apoptosis, making it possible to evaluate the status of treatment. The probe enables the imaging of CE activity in situ with ah ighresolution three-dimensional view for the first time.This study may promote advances in optical imaging approaches for precise imaging-guided diagnosis of HCC in situ and its evaluation of treatment.

Epilepsy is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that has seriously threatened human health. Accumulating evidence reveals that the pathological progression of epilepsy is closely related to peroxynitrite (ONOO − ). Unfortunately, understanding the physiological roles of ONOO − in epilepsy is still challenging due to the lack of powerful imaging probes for the determination of the level of fluctuations of ONOO − in the epileptic brain. Herein, a near-infrared (NIR) two-photon (TP) fluorescent probe [dicyanomethylene-4H-pyran (DCM)−ONOO] is presented to trace ONOO − in living cells and in kainate (KA)-induced rat epilepsy models with satisfactory sensitivity and selectivity. The probe is composed of a NIR TP DCM fluorophore and a recognition moiety diphenylphosphinamide. The phosphoramide bond of the probe is interrupted after reacting with ONOO − for 10 min, and then, the released amino groups emit strong fluorescence due to the restoration of the intramolecular charge transfer process. The probe can effectively detect the changes of endogenous ONOO − with excellent temporal and spatial resolution in living cells and in rat epileptic brain. The imaging results demonstrate that the increasing level of ONOO − is closely associated with epilepsy and severe neuronal damage in the brain under KA stimulation. In addition, the low-dose resveratrol can effectively inhibit ONOO − overexpression and further relieve neuronal damage. With the assistance of TP fluorescence imaging in the epileptic brain tissue, we hypothesize that the abnormal levels of ONOO − may serve as a potential indicator for the diagnosis of epilepsy. The TP fluorescence imaging based on DCM−ONOO provides a great potential approach for understanding the epilepsy pathology and diagnosis.

The pathological progression of thyroid diseases poses a serious threat to human health. Because thyroid diseases are closely related to selenocysteine (Sec), it is necessary to investigate the relationship between Sec and thyroid diseases. Herein, we design and synthesize a ratiometric near-infrared fluorescent probe (Mito-Cy-Sec) to analyze the fluctuations and roles of Sec in cells and in mice thyroid diseases model. The probe is composed of a nearinfrared heptamethine cyanine fluorophore, an acrylamide as the response moiety, and a lipophilic triphenylphosphonium cation as the mitochondrial localization group. After reacting with Sec for 5 min, the probe Mito-Cy-Sec exhibits a distinct ratiometric fluorescence signal accompanied by a color change from green to blue. The applicability of Mito-Cy-Sec in mitochondrial localization is assessed via the super-resolution imaging. Mito-Cy-Sec has been successfully applied to detect the fluctuations of Sec concentration in human thyroid epithelial/cancer cell lines (Nthy-ori-3 cells/BHT101 cells) and mice thyroid disease (thyroiditis and thyroid cancer) models. Besides, both of our probes Mito-Cy-Sec and commercial ROSGreen H 2 O 2 are employed to examine the interrelationship between H 2 O 2 and Sec in cells and in mice models. The results demonstrate that the relevant-levels between H 2 O 2 and Sec are exactly negative correlation. The related-levels of Sec and H 2 O 2 may be identified as diagnostic indicators for the auxiliary diagnosis of thyroid diseases. We suppose that our probe Mito-Cy-Sec can be employed as a promising chemical tool for the diagnosis of thyroid diseases.

Following the wisdom of nature to assemble functional candidates into exquisite nanoarchitectures is emerging as a promising field of research and has been widely applied in biomedical sciences. Owing to their excellent properties of structural controllability, functional diversity, dynamic adjustability, and prominent biocompatibility, the self-assembled nanoarchitectures come to play a pivotal role in fighting against cancer. This review outlines the most up-to-date developments in constructing phototherapeutic nanomaterials for photodynamic and photothermal therapy (PDT and PTT) of tumors, with emphasis on design ideas, building blocks, and advantageous characteristics of self-assembly. The prominent activities of cancer therapy obtained by these photoinduced nanotheranostics are also explored in-depth, together with the connections between the specific nanostructures and unique features, providing a comprehensive understanding of the self-assembled nanomaterials in improving the outcomes of PDT and PTT. This review aims to highlight the significance of self-assembled nanomaterials in enhancing phototherapeutic efficacy and to promote its development in various research interests ranging from material science and nanoscience to biomedicine and clinical medicine.

A gold-patterned array platform has been developed for the ultrasensitive SERS-based detection of cTnI and CK-MB.

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