Development of functional anti-cancer molecules based on precise control of excitation and relaxation pathways

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It is a long-term goal of cancer diagnosis to develop tumor-imaging techniques that have sufficient specificity and sensitivity. To achieve this goal, minimizing the background signal originating from non-target tissues is critical. Here, we achieve highly specific in vivo cancer visualization by employing a newly-designed targeted "activatable" fluorescent imaging probe. This agent is activated after cellular internalization by sensing the pH change in the lysosome. Novel acidic pH-activatable probes based on the BODIPY fluorophore were synthesized, and then conjugated to a cancer-targeting monoclonal antibody. As proof of concept, ex and in vivo imaging of HER2-positive lung cancer cells in mice were performed. The probe was highly specific for tumors with minimal background signal.