Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147; email:
Annu Rev Biochem. 2017 Jun 20;86:825-843. doi: 10.1146/annurev-biochem-061516-044839. Epub 2017 Apr 7.
Small-molecule fluorophores, such as fluorescein and rhodamine derivatives, are critical tools in modern biochemical and biological research. The field of chemical dyes is old; colored molecules were first discovered in the 1800s, and the fluorescein and rhodamine scaffolds have been known for over a century. Nevertheless, there has been a renaissance in using these dyes to create tools for biochemistry and biology. The application of modern chemistry, biochemistry, molecular genetics, and optical physics to these old structures enables and drives the development of novel, sophisticated fluorescent dyes. This critical review focuses on an important example of chemical biology-the melding of old and new chemical knowledge-leading to useful molecules for advanced biochemical and biological experiments.
小分子荧光团，如荧光素和罗丹明衍生物，是现代生化和生物学研究的重要工具。化学染料领域历史悠久；有色分子最早于 19 世纪被发现，而荧光素和罗丹明骨架已经有一个多世纪的历史了。尽管如此，人们还是重新开始使用这些染料来为生物化学和生物学创造工具。将现代化学、生物化学、分子遗传学和光学物理应用于这些古老的结构，使得新型复杂荧光染料的发展成为可能并推动了其发展。这篇重要的综述聚焦于化学生物学的一个重要范例——将新旧化学知识融合，从而产生用于先进生化和生物学实验的有用分子。
