2025/10/01 by Haley M. Smith, Aleanna J. Lengkong, Christopher A. Steven +2 · 1 voice
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Amino Acid Enzymes and Metabolism #Eicosanoids and Hypertension Pharmacology #Sulfur Compounds in Biology
paper · doi:10.1021/acschembio.5c00527
openalex publication_date 2025/10/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/24
Hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) fluorescent probes are important tools for imaging and understanding H 2 S in biology. One significant requirement for such probes is that they are highly selective for H 2 S over competing analytes, which are often present at much higher levels than endogenous H 2 S. Different approaches have been used to generate selective H 2 S probes, and recently, highly selective probes using 2-thiophene esters have been reported. We report here that in contrast to prior reports, thiophene ester probes are not selective for H 2 S but rather report on both biothiols and esterase activity. We do demonstrate, however, that the rate of reactivity toward H 2 S can be enhanced by incorporating an ortho aldehyde, leading to an 85-fold rate enhancement. We anticipate that this work will further clarify effective approaches for selective H 2 S detection and also advance strategies for improving the selectivity of electrophilic probes for H 2 S and other related nucleophiles.