Development of a Pre-assembled Through-Bond Energy Transfer (TBET) Fluorescent Probe for Ratiometric Sensing of...

Fluorescence microscopy has emerged as an attractive technique to probe the intracellular processing of Pt-based anticancer compounds. Herein, we reported the first through-bond energy transfer (TBET) fluorescent probe NPR1 designed for sensitive detection and quantitation of Pt^II complexes. The novel TBET probe was successfully applied for ratiometric fluorescence imaging of anticancer Pt^II complexes such as cisplatin and JM118 in cells. Capitalizing on the ability of the probe to discriminate between Pt^II complexes and their Pt^IV derivatives, the probe was further applied to study the activation of Pt^IV prodrug complexes that are known to release active Pt^II species after intracellular reduction.