Cyclometalated Iridium(III) Complexes as AIE Phosphorescent Probes for Real-Time Monitoring of Mitophagy in Living Cells.

ABSTRACT: Mitophagy, which is a special autophagy that removes damaging mitochondria to maintain sufficient healthy mitochondria, provides an alternative path for addressing dysfunctional mitochondria and avoiding cellular death. In the present study, by coupling the triphenylamine group with 2-phenylimidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthroline derivatives, we synthesized five Ir(III) complexes with an AIE property that are expected to fulfill requirements for real-time monitoring of mitophagy. Ir1-Ir5 were exploited to image mitochondria with a short incubation time by confocal microscopy and inductive coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Due to aggregation-induced emission (AIE), Ir1-Ir5 exhibited excellent photostability compared to MitoTracker Green (MTG). Moreover, Ir1-Ir5 manifested satisfactory p

SUBMITTER: Jin C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4764980 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature