Tumor Imaging Based on Photon Upconversion of Pt(II) Porphyrin Rhodamine Co-modified NIR Excitable Cellulose Enhanced by Aggregation

Shining New Light on Biological Systems: Luminescent Transition Metal Complexes for Bioimaging and Biosensing Applications

Luminescence imaging is a powerful and versatile technique for investigating cell physiology and pathology in living systems, making significant contributions to life science research and clinical diagnosis. In recent years, luminescent transition metal complexes have gained significant attention for diagnostic and therapeutic applications due to their unique photophysical and photochemical properties. In this Review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the recent development of luminescent transition metal complexes for bioimaging and biosensing applications, with a focus on transition metal centers with a d6, d8, and d10 electronic configuration. We elucidate the structure-property relationships of luminescent transition metal complexes, exploring how their structural characteristics can be manipulated to control their biological behavior such as cellular uptake, localization, biocompatibility, pharmacokinetics, and biodistribution. Furthermore, we introduce the various design strategies that leverage the interesting photophysical properties of luminescent transition metal complexes for a wide variety of biological applications, including autofluorescence-free imaging, multimodal imaging, organelle imaging, biological sensing, microenvironment monitoring, bioorthogonal labeling, bacterial imaging, and cell viability assessment. Finally, we provide insights into the challenges and perspectives of luminescent transition metal complexes for bioimaging and biosensing applications, as well as their use in disease diagnosis and treatment evaluation.

Advances in porphyrins and chlorins associated with polysaccharides and polysaccharides-based materials for biomedical and pharmaceutical applications

Over the last decade, the convergence of advanced materials and innovative applications has fostered notable scientific progress within the biomedical and pharmaceutical fields. Porphyrins and their derivatives, distinguished by an extended conjugated π-electron system, have a relevant role in propelling these advancements, especially in drug delivery systems, photodynamic therapy, wound healing, and (bio)sensing. However, despite their promise, the practical clinical application of these macrocycles is hindered by their inherent challenges of low solubility and instability under physiological conditions. To address this limitation, researchers have exploited the synergistic association of porphyrins and chlorins with polysaccharides by engineering conjugated systems and composite/hybrid materials. This review compiles the principal advances in this growing research field, elucidating fundamental principles and critically examining the applications of such materials within biomedical and pharmaceutical contexts. Additionally, the review addresses the eventual challenges and outlines future perspectives for this poignant research field. It is expected that this review will serve as a comprehensive guide for students and researchers dedicated to exploring state-of-the-art materials for contemporary medicine and pharmaceutical applications.

Oxygen quenching of structurally characterized [5,10,15,20-tetrakis(4-fluoro-2,6-dimethylphenyl)porphyrinato]platinum(II)

The compound [5,10,15,20-tetrakis(4-fluoro-2,6-dimethylphenyl)porphyrinato]platinum(II), [Pt(C52H40F4N4)] or Pt(II)TFP, has been synthesized and structurally characterized by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The Pt porphyrin exhibits a long-lived phosphorescent excited state (τ0 = 66 µs), which has been characterized by transient absorption and emission spectroscopy. The phosphorescence is extremely sensitive to oxygen, as reflected by a quenching rate constant of 5.0 × 108 M-1 s-1, and as measured by Stern-Volmer quenching analysis.

Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion in a Porphyrinic Molecular Container

Triplet-triplet annihilation-based molecular photon upconversion (TTA-UC) is a photophysical phenomenon that can yield high-energy emitting photons from low-energy incident light. TTA-UC is believed to fuse two triplet excitons into a singlet exciton through several consecutive energy-conversion processes. When organic aromatic dyes─i.e., sensitizers and annihilators─are used in TTA-UC, intermolecular distances, as well as relative orientations between the two chromophores, are important in an attempt to attain high upconversion efficiencies. Herein, we demonstrate a host-guest strategy─e.g., a cage-like molecular container incorporating two porphyrinic sensitizers and encapsulating two perylene emitters inside its cavity─to harness photon upconversion. Central to this design is tailoring the cavity size (9.6-10.4 Å) of the molecular container so that it can host two annihilators with a suitable [π···π] distance (3.2-3.5 Å). The formation of a complex with a host:guest ratio of 1:2 between a porphyrinic molecular container and perylene was confirmed by NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) as well as by DFT calculations. We have obtained TTA-UC yielding blue emission at 470 nm when the complex is excited with low-energy photons. This proof-of-concept demonstrates that TTA-UC can take place in one supermolecule by bringing together the sensitizers and annihilators. Our investigations open up some new opportunities for addressing several issues associated with supramolecular photon upconversion, such as sample concentrations, molecular aggregation, and penetration depths, which have relevance to biological imaging applications.

Nanoengineering Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion: From Materials to Real-World Applications

Using light to control matter has captured the imagination of scientists for generations, as there is an abundance of photons at our disposal. Yet delivering photons beyond the surface to many photoresponsive systems has proven challenging, particularly at scale, due to light attenuation via absorption and scattering losses. Triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion (TTA-UC), a process which allows for low energy photons to be converted to high energy photons, is poised to overcome these challenges by allowing for precise spatial generation of high energy photons due to its nonlinear nature. With a wide range of sensitizer and annihilator motifs available for TTA-UC, many researchers seek to integrate these materials in solution or solid-state applications. In this Review, we discuss nanoengineering deployment strategies and highlight their uses in recent state-of-the-art examples of TTA-UC integrated in both solution and solid-state applications. Considering both implementation tactics and application-specific requirements, we identify critical needs to push TTA-UC-based applications from an academic curiosity to a scalable technology.

Down and up conversion luminescence of the lead-free organic metal halide material: (C9H8NO)2SnCl6·2H2O

The present work deals with the optical properties of hybrid organic metal halide material namely (C9H8NO)2SnCl6·2H2O. Its structure is built up from isolated [SnCl6]2- octahedral dianions surrounded by Hydroxyl quinolinium organic cations (C9H8NO)+, abbreviated as [HQ]+. Unlike the usual hybrid materials, where metal halide ions are luminescent semiconductors while the organic ones are optically inactive, [HQ]2SnCl6·2H2O contains two optically active entities: [HQ]+ organic cations and [SnCl6]2- dianions. The optical properties of the synthesized crystals were studied by optical absorption spectroscopy, photoluminescence measurements and DFT calculations of electronic density of states. These studies have shown that both organic and inorganic entities have very close HOMO-LUMO gaps and very similar band alignments favoring the resonant energy transfer process. In addition, measurements of luminescence under variable excitations reveal an intense green luminescence around 497 nm under UV excitation (down conversion) and infrared excitation (up conversion luminescence). The down conversion luminescence is assigned to the π-π* transition within the [HQ] + organic cations involving charge transfer between the organic and inorganic entities, whereas the up-conversion luminescence is based on the triplet-triplet annihilation mechanism (TTA).

Tuning gelatin-based hydrogel towards bioadhesive ocular tissue engineering applications

Gelatin based adhesives have been used in the last decades in different biomedical applications due to the excellent biocompatibility, easy processability, transparency, non-toxicity, and reasonable mechanical properties to mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM). Gelatin adhesives can be easily tuned to gain different viscoelastic and mechanical properties that facilitate its ocular application. We herein grafted glycidyl methacrylate on the gelatin backbone with a simple chemical modification of the precursor, utilizing epoxide ring-opening reactions and visible light-crosslinking. This chemical modification allows the obtaining of an elastic protein-based hydrogel (GELGYM) with excellent biomimetic properties, approaching those of the native tissue. GELGYM can be modulated to be stretched up to 4 times its initial length and withstand high tensile stresses up to 1.95 MPa with compressive strains as high as 80% compared to Gelatin-methacryloyl (GeIMA), the most studied derivative of gelatin used as a bioadhesive. GELGYM is also highly biocompatible and supports cellular adhesion, proliferation, and migration in both 2 and 3-dimensional cell-cultures. These characteristics along with its super adhesion to biological tissues such as cornea, aorta, heart, muscle, kidney, liver, and spleen suggest widespread applications of this hydrogel in many biomedical areas such as transplantation, tissue adhesive, wound dressing, bioprinting, and drug and cell delivery.

Upconversion Nanodevice-Assisted Healthy Molecular Photocorrection

Mushrooms are rich in ergosterol, a precursor of ergocalciferol, which is a type of vitamin D₂. The conversion of ergosterol to ergocalciferol takes place in the presence of UV radiation by the cleavage of the "B-ring" in the ergosterol. As the UV radiation cannot penetrate deep into the tissue, only minimal increase occurs in sunlight. In this study, upconversion nanoparticles with the property to convert deep-penetrating near-infrared radiation to UV radiation have been cast into a disk to use sunlight and emit UV radiation for vitamin D conversion. An engineered upconversion nanoparticle (UCNP) disk with maximum particles and limited clusters demonstrates ∼2.5 times enhanced vitamin D₂ conversion.

Recent progress in the development of upconversion nanomaterials in bioimaging and disease treatment

Multifunctional lanthanide-based upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), which feature efficiently convert low-energy photons into high-energy photons, have attracted considerable attention in the domain of materials science and biomedical applications. Due to their unique photophysical properties, including light-emitting stability, excellent upconversion luminescence efficiency, low autofluorescence, and high detection sensitivity, and high penetration depth in samples, UCNPs have been widely applied in biomedical applications, such as biosensing, imaging and theranostics. In this review, we briefly introduced the major components of UCNPs and the luminescence mechanism. Then, we compared several common design synthesis strategies and presented their advantages and disadvantages. Several examples of the functionalization of UCNPs were given. Next, we detailed their biological applications in bioimaging and disease treatment, particularly drug delivery and photodynamic therapy, including antibacterial photodynamic therapy. Finally, the future practical applications in materials science and biomedical fields, as well as the remaining challenges to UCNPs application, were described. This review provides useful practical information and insights for the research on and application of UCNPs in the field of cancer.

Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion Based Nanosensors for Fluorescence Detection of Potassium

Typical ionophore-based nanosensors use Nile blue derived indicators called chromoionophores, which must contend with strong background absorption, autofluorescence, and scattering in biological samples that limit their usefulness. Here, we demonstrate potassium-selective nanosensors that utilize triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion to minimize potential optical interference in biological media and a pH-sensitive quencher molecule to modulate the upconversion intensity in response to changes in analyte concentration. A triplet-triplet annihilation dye pair (platinum(II) octaethylporphyrin and 9,10-diphenylanthracene) was integrated into nanosensors containing an analyte binding ligand (ionophore), charge-balancing additive, and a pH indicator quencher. The nanosensor response to potassium was shown to be reversible and stable for 3 days. In addition, the nanosensors are selective against sodium, calcium, and magnesium (selectivity coefficients in log₁₀ units of -2.2 for calcium, -2.0 for sodium, and -2.4 for magnesium), three interfering ions found in biological samples. The lack of signal overlap between the upconversion nanosensors and GFP, a common biological fluorescent indicator, is demonstrated in confocal microscope images of sensors embedded in a bacterial biofilm.

Near-infrared to violet triplet-triplet annihilation fluorescence upconversion of Os(ii) complexes by strong spin-forbidden transition

Three Os(ii) complexes were synthesized with ligands 2,2'-dipyridyl (dipy), 1,10-phenanthroline monohydrate (phen), and 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (diphen), and applied as triplet photosensitizers for triplet-triplet annihilation (TTA) fluorescence upconversion. The strong spin-orbital coupling made direct spin-forbidden transition of S₀-T₁ feasible. Lifetimes of the lowest triplet state of these complexes were determined to be 107 ns, 373 ns, and 386 ns for Os-dipy, Os-phen, and Os-diphen, respectively, using nanosecond transient absorption spectra. From steady-state phosphorescence emission spectra, energies of the triplet states were derived to be 1.75 eV, 1.80 eV, and 1.74 eV for Os-dipy, Os-phen, and Os-diphen, respectively. Using these photosensitizers, strong upconverted fluorescence of the triplet acceptors, 9,10-diphenylanthracene (DPA), perylene, and 9,10-bis(phenethynyl) anthracene (BPEA), was observed in the visible to violet range. In particular, fluorescence emission with the largest anti-Stokes shift of 1.14 eV was observed for the Os-phen/DPA system, and the upconverted quantum yield was determined as 5.9% in deoxygenated dichloroethane. Additionally, upconversion was determined in air using mixtures of dichloroethane and DMSO solvents, and the maximal quantum yield was measured to be 4.5% for Os-phen/DPA.

Robust organic nanoparticles for noninvasive long-term fluorescence imaging

Organic nanoparticles obtained from fluorophores with aggregation-caused quenching and aggregation-induced emission features for noninvasive long-term bioimaging are summarized and highlighted.

Tumor-Activated Water-Soluble Photosensitizers for Near-Infrared Photodynamic Cancer Therapy

Current photosensitizers (PSs) for photodynamic therapy (PDT) are limited by their low water solubility and tendency to aggregate, low near-infrared (NIR) absorption, and low cancer selectivity. Here, we designed iodinated, water-soluble NIR boron dipyrromethene-based PSs to achieve image-guided and efficient PDT against cancer in vivo that is enhanced by leveraging tumor-specific pH-responsive activation. PEG2k5c-I and PEG2k5c-OMe-I localized to tumors and were activated by acidic pH in the tumor microenvironment to produce ¹O₂ and fluorescence for efficient PDT and effective cancer detection after intravenous administration. Upon NIR irradiation, these PSs exhibited strong NIR absorption at 660 and 690 nm, stable NIR emission at 692 and 742 nm, and high ¹O₂ quantum yields of 0.78 and 0.72 in acidic pH. PEG2k5c-I and PEG2k5c-OMe-I killed cancer cells upon irradiation of NIR light and were nontoxic without irradiation. Light-activated PDT treatment of breast cancer tumors in mice resulted in suppression of tumor growth, DNA damage, and necrosis selectively in tumors. This work thus introduces a versatile method to directly synthesize modular pH-responsive water-soluble PSs and provides a versatile strategy for activatable PDT against cancer.

Gold-carbon dots for the intracellular imaging of cancer-derived exosomes

As a novel fluorescent nanomaterial, gold-carbon quantum dots (GCDs) possess high biocompatibility and can be easily synthesized by a microwave-assisted method. Owing to their small sizes and unique optical properties, GCDs can be applied to imaging of biological targets, such as cells, exosomes and other organelles. In this study, GCDs were used for fluorescence imaging of exosomes. Tumor-specific antibodies are attached to the GCDs, forming exosome specific nanoprobes. The nanoprobes can label exosomes via immuno-reactions and thus facilitate fluorescent imaging of exosomes. When incubated with live cells, exosomes labeled with the nanoprobes can be taken up by the cells. The intracellular experiments confirmed that the majority of exosomes were endocytosed by cells and transported to lysosomes. The manner by which exosomes were taken up and the intracellular distribution of exosomes are unaffected by the GCDs. The experimental results successfully demonstrated that the presented nanoprobe can be used to study the intrinsic intracellular behavior of tumor derived exosomes. We believe that the GCDs based nanoprobe holds a great promise in the study of exosome related cellular events, such as cancer metastasis.

High-Contrast Fluorescence Detection of Metastatic Breast Cancer Including Bone and Liver Micrometastases via Size-Controlled pH-Activatable Water-Soluble Probes

Breast cancer metastasis is the major cause of cancer death in women worldwide. Early detection would save many lives, but current fluorescence imaging probes are limited in their detection ability, particularly of bone and liver micrometastases. Herein, probes that are capable of imaging tiny (<1 mm) micrometastases in the liver, lung, pancreas, kidneys, and bone, that have disseminated from the primary site, are reported. The influence of the poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) chain length on the performance of water-soluble, pH-responsive, near-infrared 4,4'-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene (BODIPY) probes is systematically investigated to demonstrate that PEG tuning can provide control over micrometastasis tracking with high tumor-to-background contrast (up to 12/1). Optimized probes can effectively visualize tumor boundaries and successfully detect micrometastases with diameters <1 mm. The bone-metastasis-targeting ability of these probes is further enhanced by covalent functionalization with bisphosphonate. This improved detection of both bone and liver micrometastases (<2 mm) with excellent tumor-to-normal contrast (5.2/1). A versatile method is thus introduced to directly synthesize modular water-soluble probes with broad potential utility. Through a single intravenous injection, these materials can image micrometastases in multiple organs with spatiotemporal resolution. They thus hold promise for metastasis diagnosis, image-guided surgery, and theranostic PEGylated drug therapies.

Water-Dispersible Silica-Coated Upconverting Liposomes: Can a Thin Silica Layer Protect TTA-UC against Oxygen Quenching?

Light upconversion by triplet-triplet annihilation (TTA-UC) in nanoparticles has received considerable attention for bioimaging and light activation of prodrugs. However, the mechanism of TTA-UC is inherently sensitive for quenching by molecular oxygen. A potential oxygen protection strategy is the coating of TTA-UC nanoparticles with a layer of oxygen-impermeable material. In this work, we explore if (organo)silica can fulfill this protecting role. Three synthesis routes are described for preparing water-dispersible (organo)silica-coated red-to-blue upconverting liposomes. Their upconversion properties are investigated in solution and in A549 lung carcinoma cells. Although it was found that the silica offered no protection from oxygen in solution and after uptake in A549 cancer cells, upon drying of the silica-coated liposome dispersion in an excess of (organo)silica precursor, interesting liposome-silica nanocomposite materials were obtained that were capable of generating blue light upon red light excitation in air.

Temperature Dependence of Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion in Phospholipid Membranes

Understanding the temperature dependency of triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion (TTA-UC) is important for optimizing biological applications of upconversion. Here the temperature dependency of red-to-blue TTA-UC is reported in a variety of neutral PEGylated phospholipid liposomes. In these systems a delicate balance between lateral diffusion rate of the dyes, annihilator aggregation, and sensitizer self-quenching leads to a volcano plot, with the maximum upconversion intensity occurring near the main order-disorder transition temperature of the lipid membrane.

All-Solution-Based Aggregation Control in Solid-State Photon Upconverting Organic Model Composites

Hitherto, great strides have been made in the development of organic systems that exhibit triplet-triplet annihilation-induced photon-energy upconversion (TTA-UC). Yet, the exact role of intermolecular states in solid-state TTA-UC composites remains elusive. Here we perform a comprehensive spectroscopic study in a series of solution-processable solid-state TTA-UC organic composites with increasing segregated phase content for elucidating the impact of aggregate formation in their TTA-UC properties. Six different states of aggregation are reached in composites of the 9,10-diphenylanthracene (DPA) blue emitter mixed with the (2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethylporphyrinato)platinum(II) sensitizer (PtOEP) in a fixed nominal ratio (2 wt % PtOEP). Fine-tuning of the PtOEP and DPA phase segregation in these composites is achieved with a low-temperature solution-processing protocol when three different solvents of increasing boiling point are alternatively used and when the binary DPA:PtOEP system is dispersed in the optically inert polystyrene (PS) matrix (PS:DPA:PtOEP). Time-gated (in the nanosecond and microsecond time scales) photoluminescence measurements identify the upper level of PtOEP segregation at which the PtOEP aggregate-based networks favor PtOEP triplet exciton migration toward the PtOEP:DPA interfaces and triplet energy transfer to the DPA triplet manifold. The maximum DPA TTA-UC luminescence intensity is ensured when the bimolecular annihilation constant of PtOEP remains close to γ_TTA-PtOEP = 1.1 × 10^-13 cm³ s^-1. Beyond this PtOEP segregation level, the DPA TTA-UC luminescence intensity decreases because of losses caused by the generation of PtOEP delayed fluorescence and DPA phosphorescence in the nanosecond and microsecond time scales, respectively.

The first transition metal phthalocyanines: sensitizing rubrene emission based on triplet–triplet annihilation

Metallophthalocyanines with transition elements are applied to sensitize Rubrene in TTA-PUC system. The TTA-PUC system with fourth period metals showed even higher Φ_PUC than PtPc-o-Cou in same conditions.

Real-Time Visualization of the Precipitation and Phase Behavior of Octaethylporphyrin in Lipid Microparticles

The material properties of micro- and nanoparticles are fundamental for their bulk properties in suspension, like their stability and encapsulation efficiency. A particularly interesting system with potential biomedical applications is the encapsulation of hydrophobic porphyrins into lipid particles and their use as metal atom chelators, where retention and stability are keys for the design process. The overall goal here was to study the solubility, phase behavior, and mixing of octaethylporphyrin (OEP) and OEP-Cu chelates with 2 core materials, triolein (TO) and cholesteryl acetate, as single microparticles. We employed a real-time, single-particle microscopic technique based on micropipette injection to characterize the behavior of these materials and their mixtures upon solvent loss and precipitation. A clear phase separation was observed between the triolein liquid core and porphyrin microcrystals, and the ternary phase diagram of the droplet compositions and onsets of phase separation over solvent dissolution was built. On the contrary, cholesteryl acetate and OEP-Cu coprecipitated by solvent dissolution, preventing porphyrin crystallization even for very high supersaturations. This type of real-time, single-particle characterization is expected to offer important information about the formulation of other hydrophobic compounds of interest, where finding the proper encapsulation environment is a key step for their retention and stability.

Cellulose as a Scaffold for Self-Assembly: From Basic Research to Real Applications

Cellulose has received a tremendous amount of attention both in academia and industry owing to its unique structural features, impressive physical-chemical properties, and wide applications. This natural polymer is originally used for packaging, paper, lightweight composites, and so forth and is now being developed for various new areas, such as antibacterial treatment, catalysis, water purification and separation, and biological and environmental analysis. In the current article, we summarize the recent developments in the self-assembly of cellulose with various species including metal ions and metal and metal oxide nanoparticles. Then we highlight several key application areas of cellulose-based composites by reviewing the recent representative literature in each area. A significant part of this review demonstrates some exciting innovations for a wide range of practical applications of cellulose-based composites. Some challenges are also discussed with a view toward future developments.

Red Light Activation of Ru(II) Polypyridyl Prodrugs via Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion: Feasibility in Air and through Meat

Triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion (TTA-UC) is a promising photophysical tool to shift the activation wavelength of photopharmacological compounds to the red or near-infrared wavelength domain, in which light penetrates human tissue optimally. However, TTA-UC is sensitive to dioxygen, which quenches the triplet states needed for upconversion. Here, we demonstrate not only that the sensitivity of TTA-UC liposomes to dioxygen can be circumvented by adding antioxidants, but also that this strategy is compatible with the activation of ruthenium-based chemotherapeutic compounds. First, red-to-blue upconverting liposomes were functionalized with a blue-light sensitive, membrane-anchored ruthenium polypyridyl complex, and put in solution in presence of a cocktail of antioxidants composed of ascorbic acid and glutathione. Upon red light irradiation with a medical grade 630 nm PDT laser, enough blue light was produced by TTA-UC liposomes under air to efficiently trigger full activation of the Ru-based prodrug. Then, the blue light generated by TTA-UC liposomes under red light irradiation (630 nm, 0.57 W/cm²) through different thicknesses of pork or chicken meat was measured, showing that TTA-UC still occurred even beyond 10 mm of biological tissue. Overall, the rate of activation of the ruthenium compound in TTA-UC liposomes using either blue or red light (1.6 W/cm²) through 7 mm of pork fillet were found comparable, but the blue light caused significant tissue damage, whereas red light did not. Finally, full activation of the ruthenium prodrug in TTA-UC liposomes was obtained under red light irradiation through 7 mm of pork fillet, thereby underlining the in vivo applicability of the activation-by-upconversion strategy.

Imaging Upconverting Polymersomes in Cancer Cells: Biocompatible Antioxidants Brighten Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion

Light upconversion is a very powerful tool in bioimaging as it can eliminate autofluorescence, increase imaging contrast, reduce irradiation damage, and increase excitation penetration depth in vivo. In particular, triplet-triplet annihilation upconverting (TTA-UC) nanoparticles and liposomes offer high upconversion efficiency at low excitation power. However, TTA-UC is quenched in air by oxygen, which also leads to the formation of toxic singlet oxygen. In this work, polyisobutylene-monomethyl polyethylene glycol block copolymers are synthesized and used for preparing polymersomes that upconvert red light into blue light in absence of oxygen. In addition, it is demonstrated that biocompatible antioxidants such as l-ascorbate, glutathionate, l-histidine, sulfite, trolox, or even opti-MEM medium, can be used to protect the TTA-UC process in these polymersomes resulting in red-to-blue upconversion under aerobic conditions. Most importantly, this approach is also functional in living cells. When A549 lung carcinoma cells are treated with TTA-UC polymersomes in the presence of 5 × 10^-3 m ascorbate and glutathionate, upconversion in the living cells is one order of magnitude brighter than that observed without antioxidants. These results propose a simple chemical solution to the issue of oxygen sensitivity of TTA-UC, which is of paramount importance for the technological advancement of this technique in biology.

Activatable Water-Soluble Probes Enhance Tumor Imaging by Responding to Dysregulated pH and Exhibiting High Tumor-to-Liver Fluorescence Emission Contrast

Dysregulated pH has been recognized as a universal tumor microenvironment signature that can delineate tumors from normal tissues. Existing fluorescent probes that activate in response to pH are hindered by either fast clearance (in the case of small molecules) or high liver background emission (in the case of large particles). There remains a need to design water-soluble, long circulating, pH-responsive nanoprobes with high tumor-to-liver contrast. Herein, we report a modular chemical strategy to create acidic pH-sensitive and water-soluble fluorescent probes for high in vivo tumor detection and minimal liver activation. A combination of a modified Knoevenagel reaction and PEGylation yielded a series of NIR BODIPY fluorophores with tunable pKas, high quantum yield, and optimal orbital energies to enable photoinduced electron transfer (PeT) activation in response to pH. After intravenous administration, Probe 5c localized to tumors and provided excellent tumor-to-liver contrast (apparent T/L = 3) because it minimally activates in the liver. This phenomenon was further confirmed by direct ex vivo imaging experiments on harvested organs. Because no targeting ligands were required, we believe that this report introduces a versatile strategy to directly synthesize soluble probes with broad potential utility including fluorescence-based image-guided surgery, cancer diagnosis, and theranostic nanomedicine.

Multi-modal imaging of HeLa cells using a luminescent ZnS:Mn/NaGdF4:Yb:Er nanocomposite with enhanced upconversion red emission

ZnS:Mn/NaGdF₄:Yb:Er nanocomposite was synthesized using a single-step hot injection method and then applied in the downconversion and upconversion optical imaging of living HeLa cells.