Citation: Peng Liu, Shengli Zhang, Tingting Zhang, Yu Si, Ziang Liu, Xiao Qian, Yingxu Wu, Yuan Liang, Wen Sun, Engin U. Akkaya, Lei Wang. Near-infrared light activatable nanoplatform for proteins labeling, enrichment and visualization in living systems[J]. Chinese Chemical Letters, ;2026, 37(1): 110966. doi: 10.1016/j.cclet.2025.110966 shu

Near-infrared light activatable nanoplatform for proteins labeling, enrichment and visualization in living systems

Peng Liu ^a ,
Shengli Zhang ^a ,
Tingting Zhang ^a ,
Yu Si ^a ,
Ziang Liu ^a ,
Xiao Qian ^a ,
Yingxu Wu ^a ,
Yuan Liang ^{b, *,} ,
Wen Sun ^a ,
Engin U. Akkaya ^a ,
Lei Wang ^{a, *,}

a.
Cancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
b.
Department of Thoracic Oncology, Cancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, Liaoning Cancer Hospital & Institute, Shenyang 110042, China

liangyuan@cancer-hosp-ln-cmu.com

leiwang@dlut.edu.cn

Received Date: 30 November 2024
Revised Date: 15 February 2025
Accepted Date: 17 February 2025
Available Online: 18 February 2025

Figures(4)

The study of target proteins is crucial for understanding molecular interactions and developing analytical platforms, therapeutic agents and functional tools. Herein, we present a novel nanoplatform activated by near-infrared (NIR) light for triple-modal proteins study, which enabling target protein labeling, enrichment and visualization. Azido-naphthalimide-coated upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) serve as NIR light-responsive nanoplatforms, showing promising applications in studying interactions between various bioactive molecules and proteins in living systems. Under NIR light irradiation, azido-naphthalimides are activated by ultraviolet (UV) and blue light emitted from UCNPs and the resulting amino-naphthalimides intermediate not only crosslink nearby target proteins but also enable imaging performance. We demonstrate that this nanoplatform is capable of selective protein labeling and imaging in complex protein environments, achieving specific labeling and imaging of both intracellular and extracellular proteins in mammalian cells as well as bacteria. Furthermore, in vivo protein labeling has been achieved using this novel NIR light-activatable nanoplatform. This technique will open new avenues for discoveries and mechanistic interrogation in chemical biology.
- Fluorescent probes,
- Protein labeling,
- Near-infrared light,
- Upconversion nanoparticles,
- Cell imaging
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