NIR‐II Cyazulene Fluorophores with Adjustable Cycloalkenes and Spectroscopic Properties for Imaging Applications
Open accessAbstract
NIR‐II fluorescence imaging has shown broad application prospects in life science because of its deeper tissue penetration and higher spatiotemporal resolution. Developing NIR‐II fluorophores with special spectroscopic properties and analytical functions has become a cutting‐edge but challenging topic in this field. Herein, a series of azulene‐based NIR‐II fluorophores (called cyazulenes) with adjustable cycloalkenes and spectroscopic properties for imaging applications is reported. Cyazulenes (CA965, CA985, and CA1025) are constructed via the convenient coupling of cycloalkenes with azulene derivatives. They exhibit different H‐aggregation and J‐aggregation. Particularly noteworthy is that CA985 can form significant J‐aggregates with strong and sharp NIR‐II emission in biological media, and can be used for in vivo imaging of blood vessels and fine structures of collecting lymphatics in mice. Moreover, CA985 displays passive bone‐targeted capacity, thereby enabling bone imaging. This study demonstrates the chemical impact of varying cycloalkenes on the aggregate formation and spectral properties of cyazulenes, which will advance azulene‐based NIR‐II fluorophores.
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Azulene derivatives exhibited strong absorption within the NIR-II window and strong fluorescence emission from 945 to 1025 nm.
“All compounds exhibited strong absorption within the NIR-II window and strong fluorescence emission (945–1025 nm).”
From Organic small-molecule NIR-II fluorophores for tumor phototheranostics (2026) · cites this paper as [100]
Shi et al. reported azulene-based NIR-II fluorophores with tunable cycloalkene units and spectroscopic properties.
“Shi et al. reported a novel series of azulene-based NIR-II fluorophores (Fig. 3a), with tunable cycloalkene units and spectroscopic properties100.”
From Organic small-molecule NIR-II fluorophores for tumor phototheranostics (2026) · cites this paper as [100]
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Organic small-molecule NIR-II fluorophores for tumor phototheranostics
Xiang, D., Wang, Z., Zheng, H., Tang, Y., & Li, Q. (2026) · Light: Science & Applications · doi:10.1038/s41377-026-02212-w · Cited by 22 · see citing works
- Authors
- Gao, W., Liu, D., Li, H., He, Z., Liu, Y., Li, X., Ma, H., & Shi, W.
- Affiliations
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Ma, Huimin
- Shi, Wen
- Venue
- Advanced Healthcare Materials
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2025-02-16
- Volume
- 14
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- e2404996-e2404996
- ISSN
- 2192-2640 (ISSN-L)
- 2192-2659
- OpenAlex
- W4407610620
- Cited by
- 1
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1
- FWCI
- 0.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Advanced Healthcare Materials (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (22474144, 22174147, 22174148, 22374153, 22474147)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Materials Science › Materials Chemistry › Luminescence and Fluorescent Materials
- Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Spectroscopy › Molecular Sensors and Ion Detection
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Optical Imaging and Spectroscopy Techniques
- Keywords
- NIR-II fluorescence imaging, cycloalkenes, J-aggregation, H-aggregation, aggregate formation, lymphatic imaging, bone imaging, deep tissue imaging
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Cycloparaffins, Fluorescent Dyes, Humans, Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared, Mice, Azulenes, Optical Imaging
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