Reversible Fluorescent Probes for Biological Redox States

Abstract

The redox chemistry of the cell is key to its function and health, and the development of chemical tools to study redox biology is important. While fluxes in oxidative state are essential for healthy cell function, a chronically elevated oxidative capacity is linked to disease. It is therefore essential that probes of biological redox states distinguish between these two conditions by the reversible sensing of changes over time. In this review, we discuss the current progress towards such probes, and identify key directions for future research in this nascent field of vital biological interest.

Quantitative real-time imaging of glutathione

“…In fact, Han’s probe could be potentially used as a peroxynitrite probe, similar to the H 2 O 2 probe Hyper, which is reversibly oxidized by H 2 O 2 and reduced by thioredoxin35. Along similar lines, the biological meaning of many other small-molecule-based redox probes may also need careful interpretations3637. During the manuscript submission process, two other fluorescent probes were independently reported to monitor GSH dynamics in living cells3839.…”

Royal Australian Chemical Institute Awards

“…New and her group are interested in fluorescent and magnetic resonance imaging agents for visualizing hypoxia, oxidative stress, and essential and therapeutic metal ions in biology. She has discussed reversible fluorescent probes for biological redox states in a Minireview in Angewandte Chemie …”

Design of a synthetic luminescent probe from a biomolecule binding domain: selective detection of AU-rich mRNA sequences

“…1 To go one step further in understanding life at the molecular level, smart luminescent probes that selectively detect, quantify or image the key components (DNA, RNA, protein, small molecules or metal cations) involved in specific biological processes are needed. Even though synthetic chemists have developed a large number of low-molecular-weight fluorescent probes that can detect various analytes (reactive oxygen species, amino acids, anions or metal cations) or that can respond to their microenvironment (pH, redox potential), 2–8 selective sensing of larger biomolecules such as proteins, DNA or RNA is more challenging with small molecular probes. 4,9–16 Compared to low-molecular-weight analytes, the selective recognition of large biomolecules requires a high number of interactions between the probe and its target, which are difficult to implement and control with small synthetic molecular probes.…”