A mitochondria-targeted rhodol fluorescent probe for imaging of hydrogen peroxide in living cells.

Hydrogen peroxide (HO) is a main member of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cells that has a significant impact on various physiological and pathological processes of organisms. Here, we designed and synthesized a new type of fluorescent probe Rhodol-OAc for the specific detection of HO. The probe had good water solubility, high selectivity and sensitivity to HO, low cytotoxicity, excellent mitochondrial targeting ability, It was successfully applied in the imaging of exogenous and endogenous HO in living cells. In addition, theoretical calculations were carried out to clarify the luminescence mechanism of the probe. More importantly, we successfully applied the probe to indirectly detect xanthine and glucose, the metabolism of which generates HO, and achieved satisfactory results.