TY - JOUR
T1 - Visualizing cellular G-quadruplexes with a bioinspired chemiluminescent probe
AU - Wang, Pengfei
AU - Li, Xiaoyu
AU - Wang, Zhichun
AU - Guan, Ziyue
AU - Mergny, Jean Louis
AU - Yang, Jing
AU - Cheng, Mingpan
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2026. Published by Oxford University Press. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. For commercial re-use, please contact [email protected] for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact [email protected].
PY - 2026/6/24
Y1 - 2026/6/24
N2 - Fluorescence imaging of G-quadruplexes (G4s) is fundamentally limited by autofluorescence and phototoxicity from external excitation. Chemiluminescence, which generates light internally via chemical reaction, offers a promising solution. Here, we report the first chemiluminescent probe, PCL, for selective G4 visualization in vitro and in cells. PCL conjugates the high-affinity G4 ligand PhenDC3 with a reactive oxygen species (ROS)-activatable imidazopyrazinium chemilumophore. Crucially, we demonstrate that PCL’s excitation-free mechanism enables high-contrast, low-background imaging of G4s in living cells. This work establishes a novel chemiluminescent paradigm for visualizing G4s with minimal perturbation.
AB - Fluorescence imaging of G-quadruplexes (G4s) is fundamentally limited by autofluorescence and phototoxicity from external excitation. Chemiluminescence, which generates light internally via chemical reaction, offers a promising solution. Here, we report the first chemiluminescent probe, PCL, for selective G4 visualization in vitro and in cells. PCL conjugates the high-affinity G4 ligand PhenDC3 with a reactive oxygen species (ROS)-activatable imidazopyrazinium chemilumophore. Crucially, we demonstrate that PCL’s excitation-free mechanism enables high-contrast, low-background imaging of G4s in living cells. This work establishes a novel chemiluminescent paradigm for visualizing G4s with minimal perturbation.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105041671724
U2 - 10.1093/nar/gkag565
DO - 10.1093/nar/gkag565
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105041671724
SN - 0305-1048
VL - 54
JO - Nucleic Acids Research
JF - Nucleic Acids Research
IS - 11
M1 - gkag565
ER -