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Recent Advances in Fluorescent Probes and Theranostics

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A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Medicinal Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2024 | Viewed by 3456

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jinwu Yan

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Guest Editor

School of Biology and Biological Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
Interests: bioimaging; fluorescent probe; protein misfolding; alzheimer’s disease; medicinal chemistry

Prof. Dr. Weijie Chi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China
Interests: fluorescent dyes; computational chemistry; photophysical properties

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the development of fluorescent chromophore and optical microscopy technology, fluorescent probes, due to their high sensitivity, modifiers, real-time monitoring and other advantages, have made great progress in the field of biological imaging and disease diagnosis. However, there are still some defects limiting the further application of fluorescent probes in the field of biomedicine, such as specificity, photostability, biocompatibility, limited ability to penetrate deep tissues, and low quantum yield, which urgently need to be solved. Strategies to overcome the above problems through multidisciplinary research and development as well as the rational design of fluorescent probe molecules with good performance and application prospects will have important research significance and promote the development of this field.

Additionally, due to the combined functions of diagnosis and therapy, theranostics have become a research hotspot in recent years, with topics such as photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photothermal therapy (PTT). Theranostic agents can realize the real-time tracing of their absorption, distribution and metabolism both intracellularly and in vivo, as well as their interaction with the target.

This Special Issue focuses on recent progress on fluorescent probes and theranostics, including but not limited to the design, synthesis and evaluation of these functional molecules. Communications, original research papers and review articles by specialists in this field are welcomed.

Dr. Jinwu Yan
Prof. Dr. Weijie Chi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

fluorescent probes
theranostics
bioimaging
rational design
image-guided therapy
photodynamic therapy
photothermal therapy
biomaterials

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 5077 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fluorimetric Detection of Insulin Misfolding by Probes Derived from Functionalized Fluorene Frameworks

by Álvaro Sarabia-Vallejo, Ana Molina, Mónica Martínez-Orts, Alice D’Onofrio, Matteo Staderini, Maria Laura Bolognesi, M. Antonia Martín, Ana I. Olives and J. Carlos Menéndez

Molecules 2024, 29(6), 1196; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29061196 - 07 Mar 2024

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Abstract

A group of functionalized fluorene derivatives that are structurally similar to the cellular prion protein ligand N,N′-(methylenedi-4,1-phenylene)bis [2-(1-pyrrolidinyl)acetamide] (GN8) have been synthesized. These compounds show remarkable native fluorescence due to the fluorene ring. The substituents introduced at positions 2 and 7 of the fluorene moiety are sufficiently flexible to accommodate the beta-conformational folding that develops in amyloidogenic proteins. Changes in the native fluorescence of these fluorene derivatives provide evidence of transformations in the amyloidogenic aggregation processes of insulin. The increase observed in the fluorescence intensity of the sensors in the presence of native insulin or amyloid aggregates suggest their potential use as fluorescence probes for detecting abnormal conformations; therefore, the compounds can be proposed for use as “turn-on” fluorescence sensors. Protein–sensor dissociation constants are in the 5–10 μM range and an intermolecular charge transfer process between the protein and the sensors can be successfully exploited for the sensitive detection of abnormal insulin conformations. The values obtained for the Stern–Volmer quenching constant for compound 4 as a consequence of the sensor–protein interaction are comparable to those obtained for the reference compound GN8. Fluorene derivatives showed good performance in scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS), and they show antioxidant capacity according to the FRAP and DPPH assays. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fluorescent Probes and Theranostics)

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12 pages, 3603 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fluorescent Quinolinium Derivative as Novel Mitochondria Probe and Function Modulator by Targeting Mitochondrial RNA

by Bo-Zheng Wang, Ying-Chen Zhou, Yu-Wei Lin, Xiu-Cai Chen, Ze-Yi Yu, Yao-Hao Xu, Jia-Heng Tan, Zhi-Shu Huang and Shuo-Bin Chen

Molecules 2023, 28(6), 2690; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28062690 - 16 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1577

Abstract

Mitochondria have a crucial role in regulating energy metabolism and their dysfunction has been linked to tumorigenesis. Cancer diagnosis and intervention have a great interest in the development of new agents that target biomolecules within mitochondria. However, monitoring and modulating mitochondria RNA (mtRNA), an essential component in mitochondria, in cells is challenging due to limited functional research and the absence of targeting agents. In this study, we designed and synthesized a fluorescent quinolinium derivative, QUCO-1, which actively lit up with mtRNA in both normal and cancer cells in vitro. Additionally, we evaluated the function of QUCO-1 as an mtRNA ligand and found that it effectively induced severe mitochondrial dysfunction and OXPHOS inhibition in RKO colorectal cancer cells. Treatment with QUCO-1 resulted in apoptosis, cell cycle blockage at the G2/M phase, and the effective inhibition of cell proliferation. Our findings suggest that QUCO-1 has great potential as a promising probe and therapeutic agent for mtRNA, with the potential for treating colorectal cancer. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fluorescent Probes and Theranostics)

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Review

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16 pages, 5273 KiB

Open AccessReview

A Tutorial Review on the Fluorescent Probes as a Molecular Logic Circuit—Digital Comparator

by Nikolai I. Georgiev, Ventsislav V. Bakov and Vladimir B. Bojinov

Molecules 2023, 28(17), 6327; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28176327 - 29 Aug 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 887

Abstract

The rapid progress in the field of fluorescent probes and fluorescent sensing material extended this research area toward more complex molecular logic gates capable of carrying out a variety of sensing functions simultaneously. These molecules are able to calculate a composite result in which the analysis is not performed by a man but by the molecular device itself. Since the first report by de Silva of AND molecular logic gate, all possible logic gates have been achieved at the molecular level, and currently, utilization of more complicated molecular logic circuits is a major task in this field. Comparison between two digits is the simplest logic operation, which could be realized with the simplest logic circuit. That is why the right understanding of the applied principles during the implementation of molecular digital comparators could play a critical role in obtaining logic circuits that are more complicated. Herein, all possible ways for the construction of comparators on the molecular level were discussed, and recent achievements connected with these devices were presented. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Fluorescent Probes and Theranostics)

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