The Development of Fluorescent Probes for Visualizing Intracellular Hydrogen Polysulfides

Abstract

Endogenous hydrogen polysulfides (H2Sn, n > 1) have been recognized as important regulators in sulfur-related redox biology. H2Sn can activate tumor suppressors, ion channels, and transcription factors with higher potency than H2S. While H2Sn are drawing increasing attention, their exact mechanisms of actions are still poorly understood. A major hurdle in this field is the lack of reliable and convenient methods for H2Sn detection. In this work we report a H2Sn-mediated benzodithiolone formation under mild conditions. This reaction takes advantage of the unique dual-reactivity of H2Sn as both a nucleophile and an electrophile. It opens a door for better understanding H2Sn's chemical biology. Based on this reaction, three fluorescent probes (PSP-1~3) were synthesized and evaluated. Among the probes prepared, PSP-3 showed a desirable off-on fluorescence response to H2Sn and high specificity. It was successfully applied in visualizing intracellular H2Sn.

Reversible ratiometric detection of highly reactive hydropersulfides using a FRET-based dual emission fluorescent probe

“…17 It has been reported that hydropersulfide is also produced in living cells by the oxidation of H 2 S, which is generated from l -Cys by CSE and CBS. 20,22 To confirm this point, fluorescence imaging of A549 cells treated with l -Cys (200 μM) was performed using 6 -AM. As shown in Fig.…”

“…18–23 In this regard, Xian et al recently reported a series of selective fluorescent probes for hydroper-/hydropolysulfides (H 2 S n , n > 1). 18–20 They ingeniously exploited the high nucleophilic activity of H 2 S n to develop reaction-based turn-on fluorescence probes, which were successfully applied to the visualization of intracellular H 2 S n . However, due to the irreversible nature of the reactions, it was intrinsically difficult to monitor reversible concentration dynamics of intracellular H 2 S n using these probes.…”

Development of a reversible fluorescent probe for reactive sulfur species, sulfane sulfur, and its biological application

“…Based on these characteristics, fluorescent probes such as the SSP, DSP and PSP series have recently been developed by Xian et al to detect sulfane sulfur selectively in terms of a fluorescence increase. [9][10][11] However, these probes react irreversibly, and therefore they cannot visualize the dynamics of intracellular sulfane sulfur. So, we set out to develop a reversible fluorescent probe to monitor the intracellular dynamics of sulfane sulfur.…”

Phosphorescent Ionic Iridium(III) Complexes Displaying Counterion‐Dependent Emission Colors for Flexible Electrochromic Luminescence Device

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] The optical properties of these materials can be regulated by the external stimuli, such as electric field, vapor, temperature, pH value, mechanical force, UV irradiation, ions, etc. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] Among these stimuli, the electric field stimulated luminescence response is a facile and promising way for the design of stimulus-responsive materials. [24][25][26][27] Meanwhile, the emission switch induced by the electric field can be easily applied in multifunctional and smart optoelectronic devices.…”