New molecular probes that shed light on biological systems
Reactive sulfur species have attracted increasing attention in biomedical research because of their involvement in a variety of physiological functions. There has been a rising interest in sulfane sulfur compounds – compounds which contain sulfur atoms with six valence electrons, but no charge – because of the regulatory role they play in diverse biological systems. However, until now, the only selective methods for detecting sulfane sulfurs have been destructive to biological samples and cannot be used for real-time imaging.
Research describes the development of two new fluorescent probes for highly sensitive and selective identification of sulfane sulfurs. The probes were rationally designed to react selectively with sulfane sulfur compounds in a fast addition-cyclisation to form benzodithiolone and release a fluorophore. The scientists showed that they were able to detect fluorescence from the probes in cultured cells, paving the way for development of non-destructive probes for sulfane sulfurs that can be used in living cells and even in vivo.
Original publication
W Chen et al, Chem. Sci., 2013
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