Revealing drug targets with multimodal bioorthogonal AMPD probes through visual metabolic labeling

Multimodal bioorthogonal small molecule probes play a pivotal role in drug-focused biomedical research. However, existing drug tracking and imaging techniques face obstacles in living organisms, hindering precise drug localization and target protein capture. Herein, we introduced a multimodal probe naMed. 1-(azidomethyl) pyrene-4,5-dione (AMPD). The probe incorporates adjacent dione structures at the pyrene core. AMPD selectively interacts with oxygen-rich alkene-labeled drug molecules under ice blue LED light exposure, producing specific fluorescence emission and enabling in vivo tracking and flow cytometry sorting. A methyl azide group was also introduced at the pyrene core to help efficiently enrich target proteins via click chemistry with alkyne-functionalized beads. AMPD demonstrates exceptional biocompatibility, rendering it highly suitable for visual photo-triggered tracking studies. Combined with metabolic labeling using an oxygen-rich alkene-tagged drug molecule probe, AMPD is effective for live animal, tissue, cellular, and in-gel imaging, as well as target protein identification through magnetic capture. With its versatile capabilities, AMPD enhances our comprehension of drug-target interactions at the in vivo level and expedites the process of drug discovery.