A fluorescent probe capable of discriminately and simultaneously detecting dl-dithiothreitol and single sulfhydryl-containing thiols

dl -Dithiothreitol (DTT) is used mainly in clinical and laboratorial fields. It also participates in several cellular mechanisms and can be used in some diseases treatment like cystinosis or medical conditions resulting from ion or metal toxicity. Hence, DTT detection in biological milieu is of great significance. However, most of the current fluorescent detection systems cannot discriminate DTT from single sulfhydryl-containing biothiols. Herein, a fluorescent probe for DTT has been synthesized by linking maleimide to a pyrene fluorophore. It responds to DTT or single sulfhydryl-containing thiols at different emission bands, affording it the capability to discriminately detect DTT from those thiols with single SH. The probe responds to dithiothreitol quickly and shows high selectivity through excimer emission of pyrene moieties. As for the fluorescence intensity of the probe versus DTT concentration, two linear ranges (0–3 and 4.5–6.0   μM) can be observed, and the detection limit for DTT is 0.07   μM. Furthermore, the probe exhibits low cytotoxicity and can be successfully used in fluorescence imaging in both L929 and Hela cell lines.