Mitochondria-Targeting Accumulation of 5MEF Probe for Early Diagnosis of Myocardial Infarction

Myocardial infarction (MI) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, necessitating the development of more precise diagnostic strategies beyond conventional biomarker detection and imaging techniques, which often suffer from limited specificity and sensitivity. Here, we report the design and evaluation of a mitochondria-targeting accumulation probe, 5MEF, for MI diagnosis. In vitro assays demonstrated that 5MEF exhibits high specificity and selective accumulation in H9c2 cells compared to that in HUVECs. In the rat MI model, 5MEF showed significant differences between the infarcted area and the noninfarcted area, indicating that 5MEF has diagnostic potential. Biosafety assessments conducted in vitro and in vivo revealed no significant cytotoxicity or adverse effects. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that 5MEF is a highly promising molecular probe for the early detection of MI, providing a highly specific and safe diagnostic tool with a significant potential for clinical translation.