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Pharmaceutics
Special Issues
Fluorescent Probes as a Tool in Diagnostic and Drug Delivery
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Fluorescent Probes as a Tool in Diagnostic and Drug Delivery

A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Drug Delivery and Controlled Release".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 1975

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Leo Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Biomedical Materials and Devices, University of Technology Sydney, 15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
Interests: super-resolution imaging; medical diagnosis; organelles interactome
Dr. Yuen Yee Cheng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Biomedical Materials and Devices, University of Technology Sydney, 15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
Interests: biomedicine; nanotechnology; cancer treatment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Peng Zheng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Medical, Indigenous and Health Sciences, The University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
Interests: drug discovery; neuroscience

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce a call for papers for a Special Issue of Pharmaceutics titled “Fluorescent Probes as a Tool in Diagnostics and Drug Delivery”. This Special Issue aims to explore the innovative applications of fluorescent probes in the fields of diagnostics and drug delivery, highlighting recent advancements and emerging technologies as well as their impact on biomedical research and clinical practice.

Fluorescent probes have become indispensable tools in modern diagnostics, offering high sensitivity and specificity for detecting and visualizing biological molecules and processes. Their application in imaging techniques, biosensing, and molecular tracking has revolutionized our ability to diagnose diseases at early stages and understand complex biological systems.

Meanwhile, fluorescent probes enable real-time monitoring of drug distribution, release, and targeting within the body. They facilitate the development of novel delivery systems that can improve therapeutic efficacy and minimize side effects by ensuring precise delivery to target sites. The integration of theranostic probes, which combine diagnostic and therapeutic functions, represents a significant leap towards personalized medicine.

We invite researchers to contribute original research articles, reviews, and short communications that cover, but are not limited to, the following topics:

  • The design and synthesis of novel fluorescent probes for diagnostics and drug delivery;
  • Applications of fluorescent probes in imaging and biosensing;
  • The development of theranostic probes and their clinical implications;
  • Innovations in nanoparticle-based fluorescent probes;
  • Mechanistic studies of drug delivery using fluorescent probes;
  • Case studies demonstrating clinical applications and outcomes.

This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive platform for sharing groundbreaking research and fostering collaboration among scientists in the fields of fluorescent probes, diagnostics, and drug delivery. We eagerly anticipate your valuable contributions that will advance knowledge and innovation in this exciting interdisciplinary area.

Dr. Leo Zhang
Dr. Yuen Yee Cheng
Dr. Peng Zheng
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceutics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fluorescent probes
  • diagnostics
  • drug delivery
  • imaging techniques
  • biosensing

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

35 pages, 7317 KiB  
Article
Fluorescent Probes to Image the KCa3.1 Channel in Tumor Cells
by Insa Thale, Elke Naß, Laura Vinnenberg, Luca Matteo Todesca, Thomas Budde, Ivan Maisuls, Cristian A. Strassert, Albrecht Schwab and Bernhard Wünsch
Pharmaceutics 2025, 17(2), 154; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics17020154 - 23 Jan 2025
Viewed by 351
Abstract
Background/Objectives: The Ca2+-activated K+ channel KCa3.1 is not only involved in physiological processes such as immune reactions and control of vascular tone, but is highly expressed in various tumor entities. Thus, imaging of KCa3.1 channels [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: The Ca2+-activated K+ channel KCa3.1 is not only involved in physiological processes such as immune reactions and control of vascular tone, but is highly expressed in various tumor entities. Thus, imaging of KCa3.1 channels comes into focus for the localization of high channel density, i.e., for tumor diagnosis. In particular, the physicochemical properties of the fluorescent probes should be improved compared to existing probes. Methods: The small molecule inhibitor of the KCa3.1 channel, senicapoc, was used as a warhead and was coupled with different fluorescent dyes. After synthesis of the novel probes, their physicochemical properties (lipophilicity, photophysical properties) and their ability to image KCa3.1 channels in A549-3R lung tumor cells were determined. Results: In order to increase the polarity and quantum yield of reported fluorescent probes, three strategies were followed: (1) An F-atom at the B-atom of bodipy-labeled senicapoc derivatives 9a, 9b, and 15a was replaced by a OCH3 moiety, which decreased the logP value by one log-unit. (2) The p-phenylene moiety of the linker was replaced by an aliphatic tetramethylene linker decreasing the lipophilicity by 0.3–0.5 log-units. (3) Instead of bodipy dyes, fluorescein was coupled with the senicapoc warhead resulting in very polar probes 21a and 21b with low logP values of 1.5 and 1.3, respectively. Introduction of an ethyl moiety at the bodipy core increased the quantum yield, which resulted in the best punctate staining pattern of fixed and living A549-3R lung tumor cells with the ethylbodipy-labeled senicapoc derivative 10b. The specificity was shown by various control experiments. Co-staining with 10b and an antibody did not result in overlapping signals. Conclusions: The well-balanced lipophilicity and fluorescent quantum yield render the ethylbodipy-labeled senicapoc derivative 10b a very good probe to image selectively KCa3.1 ion channels in fixed and living tumor cells. It was hypothesized that the antibody binds selectively at the closed channel (58.5%), whereas the senicapoc–bodipy conjugate 10b binds selectively at the open channel (41.5%). The ratio 58.5:41.5 reflects the ratio of the ion channel in closed and open conformations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fluorescent Probes as a Tool in Diagnostic and Drug Delivery)
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