Tyrosine-derived stimuli responsive, fluorescent amino acids

Aggregation-Induced Enhanced Emission of Tetraphenylethene-phenylalanine Hybrids: Synthesis and Characterization

Aggregation-induced emitting (AIE) luminophores are sensitive and easy-to-handle types of probes that allow driving a stimulus-responsive off/on optical tool through the manipulation of the aggregation behavior. In this work, tetraphenylethene (TPE)-phenylalanine derivatives, characterized by strong aggregation-induced luminescence, were obtained through Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions. The reaction proved to be straightforwardly applicable in the single amino acid synthesis as well as in the late-stage peptide functionalization by means of both the classical solution-phase reaction and solid-phase synthesis. A comprehensive structural and analytical investigation highlighted the features driving the self-assembly process and its relationship to AIE efficiency. In particular, we showed that the simple slight (asymmetric) extension of the TPE π-systems results in more efficient and brighter emissions, with respect to the simple TPE system itself.

Synthesis and Photophysical Properties of Charge-Transfer-Based Pyrimidine-Derived α-Amino Acids

The four-step synthesis of fluorescent pyrimidine-derived α-amino acids from an l-aspartic acid derivative is described. The key synthetic steps involved preparation of ynone intermediates via the reaction of alkynyl lithium salts with a Weinreb amide, followed by an ytterbium-catalyzed heterocyclization reaction with amidines. Variation of substituents at the C2- and C4-position of the pyrimidine ring allowed tuning of the photoluminescent properties of the α-amino acids. This revealed that a combination of highly conjugated or electron-rich aryl substituents with the π-deficient pyrimidine motif resulted in fluorophores with the highest quantum yields and overall brightness. Further analysis of the most fluorogenic α-amino acid demonstrated solvatochromism and sensitivity to pH.

Accurate detection of enzymatic degradation processes of gelatin-alginate microcapsule by 1H NMR spectroscopy: Probing biodegradation mechanism and kinetics

With an increase in the severity of environmental pollution caused by microbeads, the development of biodegradable microcapsules that can be applied in diverse fields has attracted significant attention. The degradation processes are directly related to biodegradable microcapsule creation with high stability and persistence. In this study, biodegradable microcapsules are synthesized via a complex coacervation approach using gelatin and alginate as the capsule main wall materials; additionally, enzyme-induced decomposition mechanisms are proposed by observing spectral changes in proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) analyses. Additional analytical techniques confirm the chemical structure, morphology, and size distribution of the synthesized capsules; these uniform spherical microcapsules are 20-30 μm in size and possess a smooth surface. In addition to characterization, the microcapsules were exposed to targeted enzymes to investigate enzymatic effects using short-term and long-term degradation kinetics. Close inspection reveals that determination of the degradation rate constant of the major components in the capsule is feasible, and suggests two types of 4-stage degradation mechanisms that are enzyme-specific. These investigations demonstrate that capsule degradation can be explored in detail using ¹H NMR spectroscopy to provide a viable strategy for monitoring degradation properties in the development of new biodegradable polymers.

Effect of Ultrasound on the Activity of Mushroom (Agaricus bisporous) Polyphenol Oxidase and Observation of Structural Changes Using Time-resolved Fluorescence

Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) is an enzyme associated with the browning process that can occur from mechanical injury and postharvest storage. Thus, its inactivation to inhibit this process is of great interest to the food industry. Recently a nonthermal technology, high frequency ultrasound (100–1 MHz), has found usage in this aspect. In this work, the application of high-frequency (378 kHz, 583 kHz, 1144 kHz, and 1175 kHz) and low frequency (20 kHz) treatment on a PPO extract (from mushrooms) by monitoring the residual enzymatic activity is described. A control thermal treatment at 40 °C was also performed for comparison purposes. High-frequency inactivation data fitted well using the Weibull model, whereas those obtained upon low frequency followed first-order kinetics. The inactivation rate constant obtained ranged from 0.0054 (20 kHz) to 0.028 min−1 (at 583 kHz). To elucidate changes in the enzyme structure time-resolved spectroscopy of a commercial PPO enzyme model was employed. Results indicated that ultrasound-induced structural changes in PPO, in keeping with the activity behaviour upon sonication.

Rational Design and Synthesis of Large Stokes Shift 2,6-Sulphur-Disubstituted BODIPYs for Cell Imaging

Five new disubstituted 2,6-thioaryl-BODIPY dyes were synthesized via selective aromatic electrophilic substitution from commercially available thiophenols. The analysis of the photophysical properties via absorption and emission spectroscopy showed unusually large Stokes shifts for BODIPY fluorophores (70–100 nm), which makes them suitable probes for bioimaging. Selected compounds were evaluated for labelling primary immune cells as well as different cancer cell lines using confocal fluorescence microscopy.

Bottom-up modular synthesis of well-defined oligo(arylfuran)s

Oligofurans have attracted great attention in the field of materials over the last decades because of their several advantages, such as strong fluorescence, charge delocalization, and increased solubility. Although unsubstituted or alkyl-substituted oligofurans have been well-established, there is an increasing demand for the development of the aryl decorated oligofuran with structural diversity and unrevealed properties. Here, we report the bottom-up modular construction of chemically and structurally well-defined oligo(arylfuran)s by de novo synthesis of α,β′-bifuran monomers and late-stage bromination, stannylation and subsequent coupling reaction. The preliminary study of the photophysical properties demonstrated that the polarity-sensitive fluorescence emission and high quantum yields in THF solution could be achieved by modulating the aryl groups on the oligo(arylfuran)s. These twisted molecules constitute a new class of oligofuran backbone useful for structure−activities relationship studies. Meanwhile, the experimental studies and calculations showed that tetrafurans have appropriate HOMO energy levels, and could therefore potentially be high-performance p-type semiconductors.

Oligofurans have attracted great attention because of their strong fluorescence, charge delocalization, and increased solubility. Here the authors show a bottom-up modular construction of chemically and structurally well-defined oligo(arylfuran)s by de novo synthesis of α,β′-bifuran monomers and late-stage bromination, stannylation and subsequent coupling reaction.

Fluorescent glutamine and asparagine as promising probes for chemical biology

Fluorescent probes have become valuable tools in chemical biology, providing interesting inferences for unfolding the complexities of natural biochemical processes. In this study, we report the synthesis and characterization of fluorescent labelled glutamine (Gln) and asparagine (Asn) derivatives via traceless Staudinger ligation, which exhibited high fluorescence quantum yields, excellent photostabilities and emission of blue fluorescence in the visible region. The successful permeation of these fluorescent amino acids into cellular components proved their potential as fluorescent probes for chemical biology.

Visualization of third-level information in latent fingerprints by a new fluorogenic L-tyrosine analogue

Incorporation of fluorescent α-amino acids in peptide/protein sequences, at desired positions, is eminently useful for non-invasive detection of cellular events, without impacting their native properties. As an extension to such an approach, we describe the design of two stable, fluorescent l-tyrosine analogs, FHBY and BHBY, exhibiting photophysical properties associated with the AIE-coupled ESIPT mechanism, for fluorescent reporting of latent fingerprints. Notably, FHBY selectively adheres to the papillary ridges of latent fingerprints and reveals up to the third-level of information at one of the lowest reported concentrations of 25 μM.

Determination of biogenic amines in alcoholic beverages using a novel fluorogenic compound as derivatizing reagent

Biogenic amines (BAs) are organic nitrogenous compounds that are responsible for several biological events. If their concentration reaches the threshold level, it can cause mild to serious health problems in human. A novel bis-styrylphenyl Meldrum's acid derivative (BSMAD) was synthesized and served as a fluorescent turn-on pre-column derivatizing reagent for the quantitative analysis of BAs. A method for the determination of BA by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was established, which has a low detection limit (0.4 nmol L⁻¹), excellent linearity (R² ≥ 0.9946) and repeatability (RSD ≤ 3.7% intra-day, RSD ≤ 5.8% inter-day). The proposed method was successfully applied for the determination of BAs in several alcoholic beverages, including yellow wine, red wine, cooking wine, and beer. Satisfactory recoveries were obtained in the range of 94.6–100.5%. Compared with other methods, this pre-column derivatization method using BSMAD is simple, reliable, highly sensitive, and of low interference, providing an effective method for future studies of BAs in different matrices.

A novel fluorescent turn-on probe was synthesized and served as a pre-column derivatizing reagent for quantitative analysis of biogenic amines, then a method was established and used in their quantification in several alcoholic beverages.

Molecular conformational twist-controlled wide fluorescence tuning and white light emission in a single fluorophore via halochromism

Conformational differences-controlled fluorescence response of carbazole and triphenylamine appended cyano-pyridine donor–acceptor derivatives towards organic acids (TFA/PTSA).

Fluorescent amino acids as versatile building blocks for chemical biology

Fluorophores have transformed the way we study biological systems, enabling non-invasive studies in cells and intact organisms, which increase our understanding of complex processes at the molecular level. Fluorescent amino acids have become an essential chemical tool because they can be used to construct fluorescent macromolecules, such as peptides and proteins, without disrupting their native biomolecular properties. Fluorescent and fluorogenic amino acids with unique photophysical properties have been designed for tracking protein-protein interactions in situ or imaging nanoscopic events in real time with high spatial resolution. In this Review, we discuss advances in the design and synthesis of fluorescent amino acids and how they have contributed to the field of chemical biology in the past 10 years. Important areas of research that we review include novel methodologies to synthesize building blocks with tunable spectral properties, their integration into peptide and protein scaffolds using site-specific genetic encoding and bioorthogonal approaches, and their application to design novel artificial proteins, as well as to investigate biological processes in cells by means of optical imaging.

Synthesis of bio-functional nanoparticles from sono-responsive amino acids using high frequency ultrasound

A simple, one-pot high frequency ultrasonication (490 kHz) methodology to convert hydrophobic and amphipathic amino acids into nanostructures was investigated. The approach involved the oxidative coupling of aromatic amino acids (phenylalanine and tryptophan) in aqueous solutions to form high molecular weight dimers and oligomers. The role of cavitation bubble surface and ultrasonic power to trigger the out-of-equilibrium self-assembly of dimers and trimers to spherical and uniform nanostructures with controlled size has been discussed. The synthesized particles exhibited fluorescence in blue, green and red spectral regions and a strong antioxidant activity.

Conformationally rigid pyrazoloquinazoline α-amino acids: one- and two-photon induced fluorescence

Conformationally rigid unnatural α-amino acids bearing a pyrazoloquinazoline ring system that are amenable to both one- and two-photon excitation have been developed as new fluorescent probes.

Fluorogenic Trp(redBODIPY) cyclopeptide targeting keratin 1 for imaging of aggressive carcinomas

Keratin 1 (KRT1) is overexpressed in squamous carcinomas and associated with aggressive pathologies in breast cancer. Herein we report the design and preparation of the first Trp-based red fluorogenic amino acid, which is synthetically accessible in a few steps and displays excellent photophysical properties, and its application in a minimally-disruptive labelling strategy to prepare a new fluorogenic cyclopeptide for imaging of KRT1+ cells in whole intact tumour tissues.

Heck Diversification of Indole-Based Substrates under Aqueous Conditions: From Indoles to Unprotected Halo-tryptophans and Halo-tryptophans in Natural Product Derivatives

The blending of synthetic chemistry with biosynthetic processes provides a powerful approach to synthesis. Biosynthetic halogenation and synthetic cross-coupling have great potential to be used together, for small molecule generation, access to natural product analogues and as a tool for chemical biology. However, to enable enhanced generality of this approach, further synthetic tools are needed. Though considerable research has been invested in the diversification of phenylalanine and tyrosine, functionalisation of tryptophans thorough cross-coupling has been largely neglected. Tryptophan is a key residue in many biologically active natural products and peptides; in proteins it is key to fluorescence and dominates protein folding. To this end, we have explored the Heck cross-coupling of halo-indoles and halo-tryptophans in water, showing broad reaction scope. We have demonstrated the ability to use this methodology in the functionalisation of a brominated antibiotic (bromo-pacidamycin), as well as a marine sponge metabolite, barettin.

A functionalized UiO-66 MOF for turn-on fluorescence sensing of superoxide in water and efficient catalysis for Knoevenagel condensation

A MOF based sensor is reported for specific, rapid, and sensitive sensing of O₂^·− and effective and recyclable catalysis of Knoevenagel condensation.

Ru(II)-Catalyzed Regiospecific C-H/O-H Oxidative Annulation to Access Isochromeno[8,1-ab]phenazines: Far-Red Fluorescence and Live Cancer Cell Imaging

A facile ruthenium(II)-catalyzed regiospecific C-H/O-H oxidative annulation methodology was developed to construct isochromeno[8,1-ab]phenazines. This methodology delivers various advantages, such as scope for diverse substrates, tolerance to a range of functional groups, stability under air, and yields regioselective products. This methodology was successfully applied to synthesize far red (FR) fluorescent probes for live cancer cell imaging. The synthesized compounds displayed notable fluorescence properties in solution and thin-film. Their application in live cancer cell imaging was investigated using various cancer cell lines. The synthesized compound showed prominent FR fluorescence, with high quantum yield, and exhibited better cell-imaging properties, with excellent biocompatibility.

Recent advances in the synthesis and application of fluorescent α-amino acids

The design and synthesis of new fluorescent α-amino acids as well as their application in imaging of biological systems has been reviewed.

A highly selective and sensitive photoinduced electron transfer (PET) based HOCl fluorescent probe in water and its endogenous imaging in living cells

A probe based on the phenothiazine–acridine orange conjugate (Ptz–AO) has been designed and synthesized for the sensitive and selective detection of HOCl.

HOCl can appear in the mitochondria of macrophages during bacterial infection as revealed by a sensitive mitochondrial-targeting fluorescent probe

Macrophages, important cells of the innate immune system, can produce abundant HOCl in the cytoplasm to fight against bacteria. Recent studies suggest that mitochondria in macrophages play a role in antibacterial responses. During bacterial infection, however, it is uncertain whether HOCl is present in the mitochondria, mainly because of the lack of a suitable research method. Herein, by developing a new mitochondrial-targeting fluorescent HOCl probe, combined with confocal fluorescence imaging, we show for the first time that HOCl can appear in the mitochondria of macrophages (Raw264.7 cells) during bacterial infection, as confirmed with non-phagocytic cells and inhibitors as control experiments. Moreover, the developed probe exhibits an accurate mitochondrial-targeting ability, a fast response, and high selectivity and sensitivity (detection limit 9 nM), and is thus expected to be employed for further revealing the biological function of subcellular mitochondria.

Hot off the press

A personal selection of 33 recent papers is presented covering various aspects of current developments in bioorganic chemistry and novel natural products such as artesin A from Artemisia sieversiana.