Issue 4, 2018

Nitric oxide activatable photosensitizer accompanying extremely elevated two-photon absorption for efficient fluorescence imaging and photodynamic therapy

Abstract

Elevated nitric oxide (NO) levels perform an important pathological role in various inflammatory diseases. Developing NO-activatable theranostic materials with a two-photon excitation (TPE) feature is highly promising for precision imaging and therapy, but constructing such materials is still a tremendous challenge. Here, we present the first example of a NO-activatable fluorescent photosensitizer (DBB-NO) accompanying extremely NO-elevated two-photon absorption (TPA) for efficient fluorescence imaging and photodynamic therapy (PDT). Upon responding to NO, DBB-NO shows not only a remarkably enhanced fluorescence quantum yield (ΦF, 0.17% vs. 9.3%) and singlet oxygen quantum yield (ΦΔ, 1.2% vs. 82%) but also an extremely elevated TPA cross-section (δ, 270 vs. 2800 GM). Simultaneous enhancement of ΦΔ, ΦF and δ allows unprecedented two-photon fluorescence brightness (δ × ΦF = 260.4 GM) and two-photon PDT (TP-PDT) efficiency (δ × ΦΔ = 2296 GM) which precedes the value for a commercial two-photon photosensitizer by two orders of magnitude. With these merits, the proof-of-concept applications of NO-activatable two-photon fluorescence imaging and TP-PDT in activated macrophages (in which NO is overproduced) were readily realized. This work may open up many opportunities for constructing two-photon theranostic materials with other pathological condition-activatable features for precise theranostics.

Graphical abstract: Nitric oxide activatable photosensitizer accompanying extremely elevated two-photon absorption for efficient fluorescence imaging and photodynamic therapy

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
14 Sep 2017
Accepted
23 Nov 2017
First published
27 Nov 2017
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2018,9, 999-1005

Nitric oxide activatable photosensitizer accompanying extremely elevated two-photon absorption for efficient fluorescence imaging and photodynamic therapy

W. Hu, M. Xie, H. Zhao, Y. Tang, S. Yao, T. He, C. Ye, Q. Wang, X. Lu, W. Huang and Q. Fan, Chem. Sci., 2018, 9, 999 DOI: 10.1039/C7SC04044J

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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