Overgeneration of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is closely associated with cellular damage and diseases. As superoxide anion (O2(•-)) is the precursor of other ROS, exploring O2(•-) fluctuations in cells and in vivo is of great significance. To address this critical need, we have developed a novel reversible fluorescent probe with one-photon and two-photon fluorescence properties, which is well suited for monitoring O2(•-) fluxes selectively and dynamically. Imaging results substantiate dynamic and reversible fluorescence responses of this probe to intracellular O2(•-) under apoptotic stimuli. Moreover, this probe can conveniently visualize changes in O2(•-) concentration during reperfusion injury in hepatocytes, zebrafish, and mice, by means of one-photon or two-photon imaging according to depths of various samples. The present study provides a powerful fluorescent imaging tool for dynamic tracking of O2(•-) in live cells and in vivo.

We have developed two new organelle-specific fluorescent probes for the simultaneous imaging of hydrogen peroxide in the mitochondria and the endoplasmic reticulum during apoptosis.

We have developed a new fluorescent and photoacoustic dual-mode probe, ER-P, for the detection of ER polarity of liver tissues in normal and diabetic mice.

We demonstrate a new small molecule fluorescent probe, possessing near-infrared (NIR) emission and an unusually large Stokes shift. It can be readily taken up by live cells and mitochondria, and track subtle pH changes with effectively reduced biological background fluorescence and improved measurement accuracy.

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