An HBT-based fluorescent probe for nitroreductase determination and its application in Escherichia coli cell imaging

A novel HBT-based fluorescent probe HBTPN was reasonably designed for detecting nitroreductase by merging 4-nitrobenzyl as a sensing moiety to HBT-based dye HBTPP. Experiments showed that probe HBTPN displayed selective and sensitive “turn-on” response to nitroreductase and has been applied for sensing nitroreductase in living Escherichia coli.