Published in

Nature Research, Nature Chemistry, 8(5), p. 692-697, 2013

DOI: 10.1038/nchem.1706

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A dendritic single-molecule fluorescent probe that is monovalent, photostable, and minimally blinking

Journal article published in 2013 by Si Kyung Yang, Xinghua Shi, Seongjin Park, Taekjip Ha ORCID, Steven C. Zimmerman
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

Single-molecule fluorescence techniques have emerged as a powerful approach to understanding complex biological systems. However, a challenge researchers still face is the limited photostability of nearly all organic fluorophores, including the cyanine and Alexa dyes. We report a new, monovalent probe that emits in the far-red region of the visible spectrum with properties desirable for single-molecule optical imaging. This probe is based on a ring-fused boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY) core that is conjugated to a polyglycerol dendrimer (PGD). The dendrimer makes the hydrophobic fluorophore water-soluble. This probe exhibits excellent brightness, with an emission maximum of 705 nm. We have observed strikingly long and stable emission from individual PGD-BODIPY probes, even in the absence of anti-fading agents such as Trolox, a combined oxidizing-reducing agent often used in single-molecule studies for improving the photostability of common imaging probes. These interesting properties greatly simplify use of the fluorophore.