Systematic investigation of the aza-Cope reaction for fluorescence imaging of formaldehyde <i>in vitro</i> and <i>in vivo</i>
Yimeng Du, Yuqing Zhang, Meirong Huang, Shushu Wang, Jianzheng Wang, Kongke Liao, Xiaojun Wu, Qiang Zhou, Xinhao Zhang, Y.-T. Wu, Tao Peng
Abstract
-methoxybenzyl homoallylamine moiety with a self-immolative β-elimination linker was generally utilized to construct a series of fluorescent probes with varying excitation/emission wavelengths for sensitive and selective detection of FA in aqueous solutions and live cells. Among these probes, the near-infrared probe FFP706 has been well demonstrated to enable direct fluorescence visualization of steady-state endogenous FA in live mouse brain tissues and elevated FA levels in a mouse model of breast cancer. This study provides the optimal aza-Cope reaction moiety for FA probe development and new chemical tools for fluorescence imaging and biological investigation of FA in living systems.