Cu2+-labeled dansyl compounds as fluorescent and PET probes for imaging apoptosis

[Display omitted] Compound DNSTT–Cu2+, a novel chelate of Cu2+ with DOTA conjugated to a fluorescent dansyl fragment, is developed for imaging cell apoptosis. Apoptotic U-87MG cells could be selectively visualized by the fluorescence of DNSTT–Cu2+ from cytoplasm of cells, confirmed by the fluorescence of apoptosis cells co-labeled with Alexa Fluor 568-labeled annexin V, a conventional probe for selectively labeling membranes of apoptosis cells. A radioactive 64Cu2+ analog, DNSTT–64Cu2+, was easily synthesized, providing a potential PET probe for imaging apoptosis in vivo.