Rhodamine-based fluorescent probe with quick response and high selectivity for imaging labile ferrous iron in living cells and zebrafish

The transition between its various oxidation states of Iron plays a crucial part in various chemical transformation of cells. Misregulation of iron can give rise to the iron-catalyzed reactive oxygen species disorder which have been linked to a variety of diseases, so it is crucial to monitor the labile iron pool in vivo for clinical diagnosis. According to iron autoxidation and hydrogen abstraction reaction, we reported a novel “off-on” fluorescent probe to response to ferrous (Fe 2+ ) both in solutions and biological systems. The probe responds to Fe 2+ with good selectivity toward competing metal ions. What’s more, the probe presents significant fluorescent enhancement to Fe 2+ in less than 1 min, making real-time sensing in biological system possible. The applications of the probe in bioimaging revealed the changes in labile iron pool by iron autoxidation or diverse stimuli.