Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 3, 2026

An Integrated System to Remotely Trigger Intracellular Signal Transduction by Upconversion Nanoparticle-mediated Kinase Photoactivation
Published on: August 30, 2017
Cationic cyanine chromophore-assembled upconversion nanoparticles for sensing and imaging H2S in living cells and
Fangfang Wang1, Cuiling Zhang1, Xuetong Qu1
1Shanghai Key Laboratory of Green Chemistry and Chemical Processes, Department of Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China.
Abstract:
Elevated hydrogen sulfide (H2S) level is closely associated with various diseases. So the sensing of H2S is noteworthy for divulging its role in diagnosing these diseases. Herein, we proposed poly(acrylic acid)-modified upconversion nanoparticles assembled with cationic near-infrared cyanine chromophores (Cy7-Cl) as the nanoprobe (Cy7-UCNPs) for monitoring H2S based on thiolation reactions. The presence of H2S resulted into about five-fold enhancement in the luminescence intensity of Cy7-UCNPs and the nanoprobe showed a good linearity (R2 =0.9952) over the range of 1.0 - 90 μM. Furthermore, Cy7-UCNPs were successfully employed in sensing and imaging of exogenous and endogenous H2S in live cells and zebrafish. The system shows great potential in the field of nanobiomedicine because of the many excellent properties including high sensitivity, good selectivity, and low cytotoxicity.
Related Concept Videos
The Sense of Self: Reflected Self-Appraisal and Social Comparison
Introduction to Special Senses
Protein Complex Assembly
Many viruses self-assemble into a fully functional unit using the infected host cell to...
Tactile and Chemical Senses
Cationic Chain-Growth Polymerization: Mechanism
Aromatic Hydrocarbon Cations: Structural Overview
Removing one hydrogen from the intervening CH2 group...

