Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging

Abstract The pH in organisms is strictly regulated within an appropriate range for homeostasis, and many pathological processes often result in pH dysregulation to distinct intervals that serves as targets for diagnosis and treatment. Thus, a mechanism of selective and gating response for different...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ye Yang, Binlong Chen, Fangjie Wan, Chuanxun Fu, Meifang Chen, Bin Ma, Ruiyang Zhao, Meijie Pan, Qiang Zhang, Yiguang Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61255-6
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849402010923696128
author Ye Yang
Binlong Chen
Fangjie Wan
Chuanxun Fu
Meifang Chen
Bin Ma
Ruiyang Zhao
Meijie Pan
Qiang Zhang
Yiguang Wang
author_facet Ye Yang
Binlong Chen
Fangjie Wan
Chuanxun Fu
Meifang Chen
Bin Ma
Ruiyang Zhao
Meijie Pan
Qiang Zhang
Yiguang Wang
author_sort Ye Yang
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The pH in organisms is strictly regulated within an appropriate range for homeostasis, and many pathological processes often result in pH dysregulation to distinct intervals that serves as targets for diagnosis and treatment. Thus, a mechanism of selective and gating response for different proton levels in an integrated nanodevice is needed to report acidic biological environments with specific pH dynamic ranges. Here we report the design of band-pass light-up nanokits (BLINK) with pH heterogating capacity in opposite directions to achieve selective reporting of the acidic intervals (minimum to 0.25 pH unit) of pathophysiological environments. The proton heterogated property of BLINK integrates ultra-fast (<15 ms) and cascade nanophase transition of transistor-like polymeric modules and tandem FRET relay between encoded fluorophores, permitting the selective transformation of acidic extracellular or intracellular signals to exponentially amplified fluorescence readout without introducing the signals outside the targeted pH ranges. This study offers a valuable tool for pH sensing, and paves the way for the development of interval-based optical imaging technology.
format Article
id doaj-art-b113220593bf43cb91e322f94ea0e3d5
institution Kabale University
issn 2041-1723
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Nature Communications
spelling doaj-art-b113220593bf43cb91e322f94ea0e3d52025-08-20T03:37:38ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-07-0116111310.1038/s41467-025-61255-6Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imagingYe Yang0Binlong Chen1Fangjie Wan2Chuanxun Fu3Meifang Chen4Bin Ma5Ruiyang Zhao6Meijie Pan7Qiang Zhang8Yiguang Wang9State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityState Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking UniversityAbstract The pH in organisms is strictly regulated within an appropriate range for homeostasis, and many pathological processes often result in pH dysregulation to distinct intervals that serves as targets for diagnosis and treatment. Thus, a mechanism of selective and gating response for different proton levels in an integrated nanodevice is needed to report acidic biological environments with specific pH dynamic ranges. Here we report the design of band-pass light-up nanokits (BLINK) with pH heterogating capacity in opposite directions to achieve selective reporting of the acidic intervals (minimum to 0.25 pH unit) of pathophysiological environments. The proton heterogated property of BLINK integrates ultra-fast (<15 ms) and cascade nanophase transition of transistor-like polymeric modules and tandem FRET relay between encoded fluorophores, permitting the selective transformation of acidic extracellular or intracellular signals to exponentially amplified fluorescence readout without introducing the signals outside the targeted pH ranges. This study offers a valuable tool for pH sensing, and paves the way for the development of interval-based optical imaging technology.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61255-6
spellingShingle Ye Yang
Binlong Chen
Fangjie Wan
Chuanxun Fu
Meifang Chen
Bin Ma
Ruiyang Zhao
Meijie Pan
Qiang Zhang
Yiguang Wang
Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging
Nature Communications
title Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging
title_full Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging
title_fullStr Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging
title_full_unstemmed Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging
title_short Cascade-heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex pH-interval imaging
title_sort cascade heterogated proton nanotransistors for multiplex ph interval imaging
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61255-6
work_keys_str_mv AT yeyang cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT binlongchen cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT fangjiewan cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT chuanxunfu cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT meifangchen cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT binma cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT ruiyangzhao cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT meijiepan cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT qiangzhang cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging
AT yiguangwang cascadeheterogatedprotonnanotransistorsformultiplexphintervalimaging