Issue 7, 2015

A structural remedy toward bright dipolar fluorophores in aqueous media

Abstract

The donor–acceptor (D–A) type dipolar fluorophores, an important class of luminescent dyes with two-photon absorption behaviour, generally emit strongly in organic solvents but poorly in aqueous media. To understand and enhance the poor emission behaviour of dipolar dyes in aqueous media, we undertake a rational approach that includes a systematic structure variation of the donor, amino substituent of acedan, an important two-photon dye. We identify several factors that influence the emission behaviour of the dipolar dyes in aqueous media through computational and photophysical studies on new acedan derivatives. As a result, we can make acedan dyes emit bright fluorescence under one- and two-photon excitation in aqueous media by suppressing the liable factors for poor emission: 1,3-allylic strain, rotational freedom, and hydrogen bonding with water. We also validate that these findings can be generally extended to other dipolar fluorophores, as demonstrated for naphthalimide, coumarin and (4-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazol-7-yl)amine (NBD) dyes. The new acedan and naphthalimide dyes thus allow us to obtain much brighter two-photon fluorescent images in cells and tissues than in their conventional forms. As an application of these findings, a thiol probe is synthesized based on a new naphthalimide dye, which shows greatly enhanced fluorescence from the widely used N,N-dimethyl analogue. The results disclosed here provide essential guidelines for the development of efficient dipolar dyes and fluorescence probes for studying biological systems, particularly by two-photon microscopy.

Graphical abstract: A structural remedy toward bright dipolar fluorophores in aqueous media

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
25 Mar 2015
Accepted
17 May 2015
First published
18 May 2015
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., 2015,6, 4335-4342

A structural remedy toward bright dipolar fluorophores in aqueous media

S. Singha, D. Kim, B. Roy, S. Sambasivan, H. Moon, A. S. Rao, J. Y. Kim, T. Joo, J. W. Park, Y. M. Rhee, T. Wang, K. H. Kim, Y. H. Shin, J. Jung and K. H. Ahn, Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 4335 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC01076D

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.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements