An activatable NIR-II fluorescent reporter for in vivo imaging of amyloid-β plaques

• Main Authors: Miao, Jia, Miao, Minqian, Jiang, Yue, Zhao, Min, Li, Qing, Zhang, Yuan, An, Yi, Pu, Kanyi, Miao, Qingqing
• Other Authors: School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: Engineering::Bioengineering; Activatable Probes; Alzheimer's Disease
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/168862
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Fluorescence imaging in the second near-infrared (NIR-II) window holds great promise for in vivo visualization of amyloid-β (Aβ) pathology, which can facilitate characterization and deep understanding of Alzheimer's disease (AD); however, it has been rarely exploited. Herein, we report the development of NIR-II fluorescent reporters with a donor-π-acceptor (D-π-A) architecture for specific detection of Aβ plaques in AD-model mice. Among all the designed probes, DMP2 exhibits the highest affinity to Aβ fibrils and can specifically activate its NIR-II fluorescence after binding to Aβ fibrils via suppressed twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) effect. With suitable lipophilicity for ideal blood-brain barrier (BBB) penetrability and deep-tissue penetration of NIR-II fluorescence, DMP2 possesses specific detection of Aβ plaques in in vivo AD-model mice. Thus, this study presents a potential agent for non-invasive imaging of Aβ plaques and deep deciphering of AD progression.