Published papers

We have developed a series of novel near-infrared (NIR) wavelength-excitable fluorescent dyes, SiR-NIRs, by modifying the Si-rhodamine scaffold to obtain emission in the range suitable for in vivo imaging. Among them, SiR680 and SiR700 showed sufficiently high quantum efficiency in aqueous media. Both antibody-bound and free dye exhibited high tolerance to photobleaching in aqueous solution. Subcutaneous xenograft tumors were successfully visualized in a mouse tumor model using SiR700-labeled anti-tenascin-C (TN-C) antibody, SiR700-RCB1. SiR-NIRs are expected to be useful as labeling agents for in vivo imaging studies including multicolor imaging, and also as scaffolds for NIR fluorescence probes. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

We present a novel design strategy for near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence probes utilizing dye-protein interaction as a trigger for fluorescence enhancement. The design principle involves modification of a polymethine dye with cleavable functional groups that reduce the dye's protein-binding affinity. When these functional groups are removed by specific interaction with the target enzymes, the dye's protein affinity is restored, protein binding occurs, and the dye's fluorescence is strongly enhanced. To validate this strategy, we first designed and synthesized an alkaline phosphatase (ALP) sensor by introducing phosphate into the squarylium dye scaffold; this sensor was able to detect ALP-labeled secondary antibodies in Western blotting analysis. Second, we synthesized a probe for β-galactosidase (widely used as a reporter of gene expression) by means of β-galactosyl substitution of the squarylium scaffold; this sensor was able to visualize β-galactosidase activity both in vitro and in vivo. Our strategy should be applicable to obtain NIR fluorescence probes for a wide range of target enzymes. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

Near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence probes are especially useful for simple and noninvasive in vivo imaging inside the body because of low autofluorescence and high tissue transparency in the NIR region compared with other wavelength regions. However, existing NIR fluorescence probes for matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which are tumor, atherosclerosis, and inflammation markers, have various disadvantages, especially as regards sensitivity. Here, we report a novel design strategy to obtain a NIR fluorescence probe that is rapidly internalized by free diffusion and well retained intracellularly after activation by extracellular MMPs. We designed and synthesized four candidate probes, each consisting of a cell permeable or nonpermeable NIR fluorescent dye as a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) donor linked to the NIR dark quencher BHQ-3 as a FRET acceptor via a MMP substrate peptide. We applied these probes for detection of the MMP activity of cultured HT-1080 cells, which express MMP2 and MT1-MMP, by fluorescence microscopy. Among them, the probe incorporating BODIPY650/665, BODIPY-MMP, clearly visualized the MMP activity as an increment of fluorescence inside the cells. We then applied this probe to a mouse xenograft tumor model prepared with HT-1080 cells. Following intratumoral injection of the probe, MMP activity could be visualized for much longer with BODIPY-MMP than with the probe containing SulfoCy5, which is cell impermeable and consequently readily washed out of the tissue. This simple design strategy should be applicable to develop a range of sensitive, rapidly responsive NIR fluorescence probes not only for MMP activity, but also for other proteases. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

We report a fully reversible off-on fluorescence probe for hypoxia. The design employs QSY-21 as a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) acceptor and cyanine dye Cy5 as a FRET donor, based on our finding that QSY-21 undergoes one-electron bioreduction to the radical under hypoxia, with an absorbance decrease at 660 nm. At that point, FRET can no longer occur, and the dye becomes strongly fluorescent. Upon recovery of normoxia, the radical is immediately reoxidized to QSY-21, with loss of fluorescence due to restoration of FRET. We show that this probe, RHyCy5, can monitor repeated hypoxia-normoxia cycles in live cells. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

We have synthesized and evaluated a series of hydroxymethyl rhodamine derivatives and found an intriguing difference of intramolecular spirocyclization behavior: the acetylated derivative of hydroxymethyl rhodamine green (Ac-HMRG) exists as a closed spirocyclic structure in aqueous solution at physiological pH, whereas HMRG itself takes an open nonspirocyclic structure. Ac-HMRG is colorless and nonfluorescent, whereas HMRG is strongly fluorescent. On the basis of these findings, we have developed a general design strategy to obtain highly sensitive fluorescence probes for proteases and glycosidases, by replacing the acetyl group of Ac-HMRG with a substrate moiety of the target enzyme. Specific cleavage of the substrate moiety in the nonfluorescent probe by the target enzyme generates a strong fluorescence signal. To confirm the validity and flexibility of our strategy, we designed and synthesized fluorescence probes for leucine aminopeptidase (Leu-HMRG), fibroblast activation protein (Ac-GlyPro-HMRG), and β-galactosidase (βGal-HMRG). All of these probes were almost nonfluorescent due to the formation of spirocyclic structure, but were converted efficiently to highly fluorescent HMRG by the target enzymes. We confirmed that the probes can be used in living cells. These probes offer great practical advantages, including high sensitivity and rapid response (due to regulation of fluorescence at a single reactive site), as well as resistance to photobleaching, and are expected to be useful for a range of biological and pathological investigations. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

TokyoGreen (TG) derivatives were found to be efficient and specific substrates of an important drug-metabolizing enzyme, UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) 1A1. A rapid, specific, and sensitive assay of the enzyme was achieved simply by monitoring the change in fluorescence intensity. We also designed and developed the first “turn-on” fluorescent probes for UGTs. © 2001 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Switching of the luminescence properties of molecular materials in response to mechanical stimulation is of fundamental interest and also has a range of potential applications. Herein, a water-soluble mechanochromic luminescent pyrene derivative having two hydrophilic dendrons is reported. This pyrene derivative is the first example of a mechanochromic luminescent organic compound that responds to relative humidity. Mechanical stimulation (grinding) of this pyrene derivative in the solid state results in a change of the photoluminescence from yellow to green. Subsequent exposure to water vapor induces recovery of the initial yellow photoluminescence. The color change is reversible through at least ten cycles. It is also demonstrated that this compound can be applied as a mechano-sensing material in frictional wear testing for grease, owing to its immiscibility in non-polar solvents and its non-crystalline behavior. Transmission electron microscope and atomic force microscope observations of samples prepared from dilute aqueous solutions of the pyrene derivative on suitable substrates, together with dynamic light scattering measurements for the compound in aqueous solution, indicate that this amphiphilic dumbbell-shaped molecule forms micelles in water. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Covalent attachment of mechanoresponsive luminescent organic or organometallic compounds to other materials is a promising approach to develop a wide variety of mechanoresponsive luminescent materials. Here, we report covalently linkable mechanoresponsive micelles that change their photoluminescence from yellow to green in response to mechanical stimulation under aqueous conditions. These micelles are composed of a dumbbell-shaped amphiphilic pyrene derivative having amine groups at the peripheral positions of its dendrons. Using a well-established cross-linker, the micelles were covalently linked via their peripheral amine groups to the surface of glass beads, polylactic acid (PLA) beads, and living cells under aqueous conditions. Vortexing of glass beads bearing the micelles in a glass vial filled with water caused a photoluminescence color change from yellow to green. PLA beads bearing the micelles showed no change in photoluminescence color under the same conditions. We ascribe this result to the lower density and stiffness of the PLA beads, because the color of the PLA beads changed on vortexing in the presence of bare glass beads. HeLa cells and HL-60 cells bearing the micelles showed no obvious photoluminescence color change under vortexing. The structure, photophysical properties, and mechanism of photoluminescence color change of the micellar assemblies were examined. © 2014 American Chemical Society.

Hippocampal sharp waves (SWs)/ripples represent the reactivation of neurons involved in recently acquired memory and are crucial for memory consolidation. By labeling active cells with fluorescent protein under the control of an immediate-early gene promoter, we found that neurons that had been activated while mice explored a novel environment were preferentially reactivated during spontaneous SWs in hippocampal slices in vitro. During SWs, the reactivated neurons received strong excitatory synaptic inputs as opposed to a globally tuned network balance between excitation and inhibition. © 2014 Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved.

Cell surfaces represent a platform through which extracellular signals that determine diverse cellular processes, including migration, division, adhesion, and phagocytosis, are transduced. Techniques to rapidly reconfigure the surface properties of living cells should thus offer the ability to harness these cellular functions. Although the molecular mechanism of phagocytosis is well characterized, the minimal molecular players that are sufficient to activate this elaborate process remain elusive.We developed and implemented a technique to present a molecule of interest at the cell surface in an inducible manner on a time scale of minutes. We simultaneously induced the cell surface display of the C2 domain of milk fat globule epidermal growth factor factor 8 (MFG-E8) and activated the intracellular small guanosine triphosphatase Rac, which stimulates actin polymerization at the cell periphery. The C2 domain binds to phosphatidylserine, a lipid exposed on the surface of apoptotic cells. By integrating the stimulation of these two processes, we converted HeLa cells into a phagocytic cell line that bound to and engulfed apoptotic human Jurkat cells. Inducing either the cell surface display of the C2 domain or activating Rac alone was not sufficient to stimulate phagocytosis, which suggests that attachment to the target cell and actin reorganization together constitute the minimal molecular events that are needed to induce phagocytosis. This cell surface display technique might be useful as part of a targeted, cell-based therapy in which unwanted cells with characteristic surface molecules could be rapidly consumed by engineered cells.

Caged compounds are useful tools for precise spatiotemporal modulation of cell functions, but in most cases uncaging requires ultraviolet (UV) light, which is cytotoxic and has limited tissue penetration. Therefore, caged compounds that can be activated by longer-wavelength light are required. Here we describe a novel photoelimination reaction of 4-aryloxy boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) derivatives and show that BODIPY can function as a caging group for phenol groups. We developed a novel BODIPY-caged histamine compound, which is photoactivatable with blue-green visible light to stimulate cultured HeLa cells in a spatiotemporally well-controlled manner. This caging strategy is expected to be widely applicable to develop tools for probing various cellular functions. (Chemical Equation Presented).

Acrolein, a cytotoxic α,β-unsaturated aldehyde and disease biomarker, was determined in plasma by means of a novel tethering strategy using Michael addition of the compound to a fluorescent dye, followed by immobilization of the product on microbeads via the aldehyde moiety. Elevation of blood acrolein was detected in mice treated with an anticancer agent cyclophosphamide, which releases acrolein upon activation. This method should be suitable for high-throughput diagnostic and clinical application. © the Partner Organisations 2014.

Bioluminescence imaging (BLI) has advantages for investigating biological phenomena in deep tissues of living animals, but few design strategies are available for functional bioluminescent substrates. We propose a new design strategy (designated as bioluminescent enzyme-induced electron transfer: BioLeT) for luciferin-based bioluminescence probes. Luminescence measurements of a series of aminoluciferin derivatives confirmed that bioluminescence can be controlled by means of BioLeT. Based on this concept, we developed bioluminescence probes for nitric oxide that enabled quantitative and sensitive detection even in vivo. Our design strategy should be applicable to develop a wide range of practically useful bioluminogenic probes.

Near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probes based on the Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) mechanism have various practical advantages, and their molecular design is generally based on the use of NIR dark quenchers, which are nonfluorescent dyes, as cleavable FRET acceptors. However, few NIR dark quenchers can quench fluorescence in the Cy7 region (over 780 nm). Here, we describe Si-rhodamine-based NIR dark quenchers (SiNQs), which show broad absorption covering this region. They are nonfluorescent independently of solvent polarity and pH, probably due to free rotation of the bond between the N atom and the xanthene moiety. SiNQs can easily be structurally modified to tune their water-solubility and absorption spectra, enabling flexible design of appropriate FRET pair for various NIR fluorescent dyes. To demonstrate the usefulness of SiNQs, we designed and synthesized a NIR fluorescent probe for matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity using SiNQ780. This probe 1 could detect MMP activity in vitro, in cultured cells and in a tumor-bearing mouse, in which the tumor was clearly visualized, by NIR fluorescence. We believe SiNQs will be useful for the development of a wide range of practical NIR fluorescent probes. (Chemical Equation Presented).

We discovered that positively charged terbium complexes bearing 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane functionalized with amide ligands are highly sensitive to dynamic luminescence quenching by NAD(P)H. We exploited this phenomenon to establish a general time-resolved luminescence-based assay platform for sensitive detection of NAD(P)H-dependent enzyme activities. This journal is

Fluorescein is a representative green fluorophore that has been widely used as a scaffold of practically useful green fluorescent probes. Here, we report synthesis and characterization of a silicon-substituted fluorescein, i.e., 2-COOH TokyoMagenta (2-COOH TM), which is a fluorescein analogue in which the O atom at the 10′ position of the xanthene moiety of fluorescein is replaced with a Si atom. This fluorescein analogue forms a spirolactone ring via intramolecular nucleophilic attack of the carboxylic group in a pH-dependent manner. Consequently, 2-COOH TM exhibits characteristic large pH-dependent absorption and fluorescence spectral changes: (1) 2-COOH TM is colorless at acidic pH, whereas fluorescein retains observable absorption and fluorescence even at acidic pH, and the absorption maximum is also shifted; (2) the absorption spectral change occurs above pH 7.0 for 2-COOH TM and below pH 7.0 for fluorescein; (3) 2-COOH TM shows a much sharper pH response than fluorescein because of its pKa inversion, i.e., pKa1 > pKa2. These features are also different from those of a compound without the carboxylic group, 2-Me TokyoMagenta (2-Me TM). Analysis of the chemical equilibrium between pH 3.0 and 11.0 disclosed that 2-COOH TM favors the colorless and nonfluorescent lactone form, compared with fluorescein. Substitution of Cl atoms at the 4′ and 5′ positions of the xanthene moiety of 2-COOH TM to obtain 2-COOH DCTM shifted the equilibrium so that the new derivative exists predominantly in the strongly fluorescent open form at physiological pH (pH 7.4). To demonstrate the practical utility of 2-COOH DCTM as a novel scaffold for red fluorescent probes, we employed it to develop a probe for β-galactosidase. (Chemical Equation Presented).

Tissue-restricted bioreactions can be utilized to design chemical-biological tools and prodrugs. We have developed a fluorescent-substrate-library-based enzyme discovery approach to screen tissue extracts for enzymatic activities of interest. Assay-positive candidate proteins were identified by diced electrophoresis gel assay followed by peptide mass fingerprinting. We discovered that pyruvyl anilide is specifically hydrolyzed by carboxylesterase 2 (CES2), which is predominantly localized in the liver and kidney. We show that the pyruvyl targeting group/CES2 enzyme pair can be used to deliver the 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin fluorophore specifically to the liver and kidney in vivo. Our screening approach should be useful to find other masking group/enzyme pairs suitable for development of fluorescent substrates and prodrugs.

New sulforhodamine-based fluorescent 'turn-on' probes have been developed for the direct imaging of cellular hypoxia. Rapid access to this novel class of water-soluble 'azobenzene-caged' fluorophores was made possible through an easily-implementable azo-coupling reaction between a fluorescent primary arylamine derived from a sulforhodamine 101 scaffold (named SR101-NaphtNH2) and a tertiary aniline whose N-substituents are neutral, cationic, or zwitterionic. The detection mechanism is based on the bioreductive cleavage of the azo bond that restores strong far-red fluorescence (emission maximum at 625 nm) by regenerating the original sulforhodamine SR101-NaphtNH2. This valuable fluorogenic response was obtained for the three 'smart' probes studied in this work, as shown by an in vitro assay using rat liver microsomes placed under aerobic and then under hypoxic conditions. Most importantly, the probe namely SR101-NaphtNH2-Hyp-diMe was successfully applied for imaging the hypoxic status of tumor cells (A549 cells).

Disease-associated alterations of enzymatic functions are potentially useful as disease biomarkers, and here we show that an enzymomics (omics of active enzymes) approach, in which enzymatic activities are screened with panels of substrates, can be an effective way to identify such alterations. In the present study, we used a panel of fluorogenic substrates to search for altered enzyme activities in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from a mouse model of lung inflammation. We found that acylamino acid releasing enzyme (APEH) activity was highly elevated, apparently reflecting the increased population of immune cells in the inflamed lung.

We employed a fluorescent substrate-based target discovery approach to screen the enzymome for metabolic activity towards pyruvyl-amidated peptides, and identified an acylamino acid-releasing enzyme (APEH). Cells overexpressing APEH exhibited higher metabolic activity towards the probe, N-pyruvyl-leucyl-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin (Pyr-Leu-AMC), while the selective APEH inhibitor AA74-1 blocked the reaction. Metabolism of various pyruvylated peptides in liver lysate was almost completely blocked by AA74-1. Pyruvyl peptides are synthesized in response to oxidative stress, but their biological role is poorly understood; identification of a key contributor to their metabolism should stimulate research on pathways leading from oxidative stress to protein modification and biological output.