Bioimaging of Lysosomes with a BODIPY pH-Dependent Fluorescent Probe
Raquel C. R. Gonçalves,
Efres Belmonte-Reche,
João Pina,
Milene Costa da Silva,
Sónia C. S. Pinto,
Juan Gallo,
Susana P. G. Costa,
M. Manuela M. Raposo
Affiliations
Raquel C. R. Gonçalves
Centre of Chemistry, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Efres Belmonte-Reche
Advanced (Magnetic) Theranostic Nanostructures Lab, International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Av. Mestre José Veiga s/n, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
João Pina
Coimbra Chemistry Centre-Institute of Molecular Sciences, Department of Chemistry, University of Coimbra, 3004-535 Coimbra, Portugal
Milene Costa da Silva
Advanced (Magnetic) Theranostic Nanostructures Lab, International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Av. Mestre José Veiga s/n, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
Sónia C. S. Pinto
Centre of Chemistry, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Juan Gallo
Advanced (Magnetic) Theranostic Nanostructures Lab, International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Av. Mestre José Veiga s/n, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
Susana P. G. Costa
Centre of Chemistry, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
M. Manuela M. Raposo
Centre of Chemistry, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Fluorescence-based probes represent a powerful tool for noninvasive imaging of living systems in real time and with a high temporal and spatial resolution. Amongst several known fluorophores, 3-difluoroborodipyrromethene (BODIPY) derivatives have become a cornerstone for innovative fluorescent labelling applications, mainly due to their advantageous features including their facile synthesis, structural versatility and exceptional photophysical properties. In this context, we report a BODIPY-based fluorescent probe for imaging of lysosomes in living cells. The BODIPY derivative displayed a remarkable fluorescence enhancement at low pH values with a pKa* of 3.1. In vitro studies by confocal microscopy in HeLa cells demonstrated that the compound was able to permeate cell membrane and selectively label lysosome whilst remaining innocuous to the cell culture at the maximum concentration tested. Herein, the BODIPY derivative holds the promise of investigating lysosomal dynamics and function in living cells through fluorescence imaging.
