JID: CCLET
[m5G;June 9, 2021;9:23]
Chinese Chemical Letters
Communication
A special o-dialdehyde fluorescent probe simultaneously sensing Hcy,
GSH and its application in living cells and zebrafish imaging
a
a,b
c
d
a
b,c,∗
Yongbin Zhang , Yu Zhang , Yongkang Yue , Jianbin Chao , Fangjun Huo , Caixia Yin
a
Shanxi Key Laboratory of Functional Molecules, Research Institute of Applied Chemistry, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
b
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
c
Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Molecular Engineering of Ministry of Education, Institute of Molecular Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006,
China
d
Scientific Instrument Center, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
a r t i c l e i n f o
a b s t r a c t
Article history:
The development of fluorescent probes enabling to distinguish Cys, Hcy and GSH has always been a con-
siderable challenge, in particular the distinction of Hcy and other two biothiols, because Hcy has a very
similar structure with Cys-and a relatively lower concentration in living organisms. In this work, a special
o-dialdehyde fluorescent probe, quinoline-2,3-dicarboxaldehyde (QDA), has been synthesized and demon-
strated superior performance in differentiating detection of Hcy and GSH, which is different from the
previous reported o-dialdehyde probes specifically detecting GSH. Furthermore, the probe can selectively
distinguish Hcy and GSH from different signal channels in living cells and zebrafish, meaning it has great
potential in biological applications. This finding will provide a novel idea for the design of fluorescent
probes to distinguish biothiols.
Received 16 February 2021
Revised 8 May 2021
Accepted 13 May 2021
Available online xxx
Keywords:
o-Dialdehyde
Distinguish
Hcy
GSH
Bioimaging
© 2021 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia
Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.
Nowadays, with the in-depth study of life science, people have
gradually realized the importance of many active small molecules
in life processes, but how to accurately monitor the concentra-
tion and metabolic process of these active small molecules has al-
ways been a challenging scientific problem. As an important part
of active small molecules, biothiols such as glutathione (GSH), cys-
teine (Cys) and homocysteine (Hcy) play a crucial role in vari-
ous physiological and pathological processes [1–3]. GSH, which is
the most abundant thiol in cells, plays a major anti-oxidation role
in maintaining intracellular redox activities and regulating genes
in cellular functions, and its abnormal concentration can cause
atherosclerosis, lung damage, Alzheimer’s disease and cancer [4–8].
As a precursor of GSH synthesis, Cys-participates in protein syn-
thesis, detoxification and metabolism [9,10], and its abnormal level
can give rise to hematopoietic dysfunction, neurotoxicity, lethargy
and AIDS [11–15]. Hcy is an intermediate product in methionine
metabolism to produce Cys, and it can directly or indirectly accel-
erate thrombosis so that high level of Hcy can lead to cardiovas-
cular disease, osteoporosis, inflammatory bowel disease, pregnancy
complications [16–18]. Therefore, each biothiol can be regarded as
a marker of disease, and their differential detection and metabolic
process monitoring are of great value for the diagnosis and treat-
ment of related diseases.
Compared with the traditional analytical methods, fluorescent
probes have been proved to be a very effective tool for detecting
and visualizing small biological molecules in cells due to their ad-
vantages of high spatial and temporal resolution, non-invasiveness,
high sensitivity and wide dynamic response range [19–22]. So far,
many multi-signal fluorescent probes have been reported in dis-
criminatively detecting different biothiols, and applied to multi-
color imaging of cells or living tissues by means of confocal flu-
orescence imaging technology [23–34]. However, due to the simi-
lar structures and properties of different biothiols, especially only
a single methylene unit difference in the structure of Hcy and Cys,
and the concentration of Cys-and Hcy far lower than the level of
GSH in biological body [35–37], it is greatly difficult to distinguish
Hcy and Cys, or Hcy/Cys-and GSH, resulting in the reported fluo-
rescent probes possessing the ability to simultaneously distinguish
GSH, Hcy and Cys-were extremely limited [38–40]. Therefore, the
development of fluorescent probes that can distinguish GSH, Hcy
and Cys-is still a hot topic for researchers in this field.
As early as 1989, the Neuschochocho-Tetri group had reported
that o-phthaldialdehyde (OPA) reacted with GSH to generate a
highly fluorescent cyclized adduct, and established a HPLC sepa-
ration and fluorometric detection method for GSH [41]. Later, the
∗
1001-8417/© 2021 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.