Aggregation-Induced Emission Luminogens for Cell Death Research
Yunfei Zuo, Hanchen Shen, Feiyi Sun, Pei Li, Jianwei Sun, Ryan T. K. Kwok, Jacky W. Y. Lam, Ben Zhong Tang
Abstract
Cell death is closely related to various diseases, and monitoring and controlling cell death is a promising strategy to develop efficient therapy. Aggregation-induced emission luminogens (AIEgens) are ideal candidates for developing novel theranostic agents because of their intriguing properties in the aggregate state. The rational application of AIE materials in cell death-related research is still in its infancy but has shown great clinical potential. This review discussed the research frontier and our understanding of AIE materials in various subroutines of cell death, including apoptosis, necrosis, immunogenic cell death, pyroptosis, autophagy, lysosome-dependent cell death, and ferroptosis. We hope that the new insights can be offered to this growing field and attract more researchers to provide valuable contributions.