Over expression of nitroreductase (NTR) enzymes is closely related to the hypoxic status in living organisms for which molecular oxygen is vital. The development of effective methods for real-time monitoring of NTR activity is of great significance for medical diagnosis and cancer research. Here, we present a novel water-soluble Bodipy-based chemodosimeter (NBB) effective in imaging the hypoxic status of human non-small-cell lung cancer A549 cells. We assumed that NTR-mediated activation of the probe NBB is based on the reductive release of meso-phenol Bodipy dye to finally produce unusual fluorescence "ON-OFF" response.
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