Dual-Emissive Detection of ATP and Hypochlorite Ions for Monitoring Inflammation-Driven Liver Injury In Vitro and In Vivo

Reactive oxygen species play a pivotal role in liver disease, contributing to severe liver damage and chronic inflammation. In liver injury driven by inflammation, adenosine-5′-triphosphate (ATP) and hypochlorite ion (ClO–) emerge as novel biomarkers, reflecting mitochondrial dysfunction and amplified oxidative stress, respectively. However, the dynamic fluctuations of ATP and ClO– in hepatocytes and mouse livers remain unclear, and multidetection techniques for these biomarkers are yet to be developed. This study presents RATP-NClO, a dual-channel fluorescent bioprobe capable of synchronously detecting ATP and ClO– ions. RATP-NClO exhibits excellent selectivity and sensitivity for ATP and ClO– ions, demonstrating a dual-channel fluorescence response in a murine hepatocyte cell line. Upon intravenous administration, RATP-NClO reveals synchronized ATP depletion and ClO– amplification in the livers of mice with experimental metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). Through a comprehensive analysis of the principal mechanism of the developed bioprobe and the verification of its reliable detection ability in both in vitro and in vivo settings, we propose it as a unique tool for monitoring changes in intracellular ATP and ClO– level. These findings underscore its potential for practical image-based monitoring and functional phenotyping of MASH pathogenesis.