Recent Advancement in Fluorescent Probes for Sensing and Imaging Tyrosinase Activity in Living Cells

Abstract

Tyrosinase, a multi-copper oxidase enzyme, is widely distributed in different organisms and plays a vital role in the melanogenesis and enzymatic browning in fruits and vegetables. An abnormal level of tyrosinase in the living system is often associated with different kinds of skin diseases including albinism, vitiligo, skin hyperpigmentation etc. Moreover, overexpressed tyrosinase has become a prognostic biomarker for melanoma. Therefore early detection of tyrosinase activity both in vivo and in vitro has a potential diagnostic and therapeutic application. Small-molecule fluorescent probes have become a powerful device over the traditional biochemical method for the detection and imaging of enzymatic activities in biological systems by virtue of their superior sensitivity, nondestructive fast analysis, spatiotemporal resolution and real-time detection abilities. Moreover, due to their structural tunability, several small-molecule fluorescent probes have been developed to meet various aspects such as enhancing sensitivity, selectivity, cell permeability, real-time monitoring and easy imaging in biological systems. This review article sums up the recent progress of small-molecules fluorescent probes for tyrosinase activity, including their synthesis strategies, mechanistic paths and potential applications based on reports mainly in the past five years. The rapid advancement in this field suggests that fluorescence detection and imaging is a promising technology and widen up new horizons for early diagnosis of melanoma.