Growth and Biological Interactions of Uric Acid Crystals Tracked by Heteroatom-Substituted Rhodamines

The formation of pathological crystals is the origin of many diseases, although the growth mechanisms, crystalline formations, interactions with cells, and intracellular activities of the crystals are still poorly understood. Uric acid (UA) crystals, one of the essential components of kidney stones, are explored by the selective recognition of heteroatom-substituted rhodamines (HSRs). Moreover, the highly specific interaction between HSRs and UA crystals was also confirmed by the tuned growth of uric acid banded spherulites. With the HSR-dyed UA crystals, we sensitively tracked the stepwise interaction of crystals and live cells from the adhesive, internalization of crystals, and lysosome-involved inflammation in vivo.