Visualization of α1-adrenergic receptors with phenylpiperazine-based fluorescent probes

Several novel fluorescent probes targetingα1-adrenergic receptors were well designed and synthesized by conjugating phenyl- piperazine pharmacophore with coumarin and fluorescein fluorophores. These compounds showed suitable fluorescence prop- erty, high receptor affinity, and low cytotoxicity. Moreover, the cell imaging results displayed that these probes can be effec- tive tools for the real-time detection of ligand-receptor interactions, as well as the visualization and location of α1-adrenergic receptors in living cells.