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An AIEgen‐Peptide Conjugate as a Phototheranostic Agent for Phagosome‐Entrapped Bacteria
Author(s) -
Qi Guobin,
Hu Fang,
Shi Leilei,
Wu Min,
Liu Bin
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.201906099
Subject(s) - phagosome , bacteria , intracellular , chemistry , reactive oxygen species , cytoplasm , intracellular parasite , cytotoxicity , photosensitizer , fluorescence , peptide , microbiology and biotechnology , biophysics , biochemistry , biology , in vitro , photochemistry , quantum mechanics , genetics , physics
Abstract The detection and elimination of intracellular bacteria remain a major challenge. In this work, we report an aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) bioprobe that can detect bacterial infection and kill bacteria surviving inside macrophages through a dynamic process, notably specific molecular tailoring of the probe by caspase‐1 activation in infected macrophages and accumulation of the residue on phagosomes containing bacteria, leading to light‐up fluorescent signals. Moreover, the AIEgen can serve as a photosensitizer for generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS); and the average ROS indicator fluorescent signal intensity per unit area in the bacterial phagosomes is approximately 2.7‐fold higher than that in the cytoplasm. This, in turn, induces bacteria killing with high efficiency and minimal cytotoxicity towards macrophages. We envision that this specific light‐up bioprobe may provide a new approach for selective and sensitive detection and eradication of intracellular bacterial infections.