Development of Fluorescent Probes for Labile Iron and Labile Heme and Their Applications

Abstract

Iron is ubiquitously contained in all the living things on the earth. Iron plays many essential roles in our body as iron ions and heme with proteins. At the same time, labile iron and heme, designated as protein-free or weakly protein-bound species, also play essential roles in physiological and pathological aspects. However, the subcellular dynamics of labile iron/heme have remained unclear due to a lack of useful imaging probes. This review presents new chemical tools enabling live-cell imaging of labile iron and labile heme and their applications.