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Imidazo-pyridine-based zinc(II) complexes as fluorescent hydrogen sulfide probes.

Maria StrianeseStefano BrennaG Attilio ArdizzoiaDaniela GuarnieriMarina LambertiIlaria D'AuriaClaudio Pellecchia
Published in: Dalton transactions (Cambridge, England : 2003) (2021)
In this work we explore the interaction of HS- with a family of fluorescent zinc complexes. In particular we selected a family of complexes with N,O-bidentate ligands aiming at assessing whether the zinc-chelating ligand plays a role in influencing the reactivity of HS- with the complexes under investigation. Different experiments, performed by diverse spectroscopic techniques, provide evidence that HS- binds the zinc center of all the complexes included in this study. The results highlight the potential of the devised systems to be used as HS-/H2S fluorescent sensors via a coordinative-based approach. To shed light on the species formed in solution when HS-/H2S interacts with the title complexes and aiming to rationalize the photophysical properties of the sensing constructs, we performed a computational analysis based on the time dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT). Preliminary bio-imaging experiments were also performed and the results indicate the potential of this class of compounds as probes for the detection of H2S in living cells.
Keyphrases
  • living cells
  • fluorescent probe
  • density functional theory
  • single molecule
  • quantum dots
  • molecular docking
  • high resolution
  • fluorescence imaging
  • risk assessment
  • human health
  • climate change