Peng Wei, Wei Yuan, Fengfeng Xue, Wei Zhou, Ruohan Li, Datong Zhang and Tao Yi
Chem. Sci., 2018,9, 495-501
DOI:
10.1039/C7SC03784H,
Edge Article
The detection of hypochlorous acid (HOCl) in vivo is vitally important because the local concentration of HOCl is highly correlated with some diseases such as atherosclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. However, in vivo detection of HOCl remains a challenge due to the lack of a suitable probe. We report here a near-infrared (NIR) emissive “turn-on” probe (FDOCl-1) based on a methylene blue derivative, which can quickly detect HOCl via a newly found deformylation mechanism. FDOCl-1 displays remarkable selectivity and sensitivity towards HOCl. The dramatic changes in colour and NIR emission were used to detect HOCl in vitro and in vivo in a mouse arthritis model.