Although transition metals make up less than 0.1 % of the total mass in a human body, they have significant impacts on fundamental biological processes. Among them, copper(I) (Cu+), copper(II) (Cu2+), ferrous ion (Fe2+) and ferric ion (Fe3+) exhibited many vital biochemical events. Therefore, precisely monitoring their biological distribution and concentrations via modern analytical techniques are urgently required. In particular, small molecule fluorescent probes have enabled the real-time and in suit detection of the dynamic fluctuations and spatiotemporal distribution of these transition metal ions. In this work, abundant representative binding- and activity-based small molecule fluorescent probes for monitoring of Cu+, Cu2+, Fe2+ and Fe3+ from 2020 to 2024 are showcased. Moreover, the molecular design strategies, monitoring mechanisms, and biological applications of these fluorescence probes are described in detail. Furthermore, the strengths and weaknesses of various types of metal ion-responsive molecular probes are analyzed and discussed. In this regard, our underlying goal is to encourage the development of innovative small molecule fluorescent probes for detecting transition metal ions.

中文翻译：

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基于结合和活性的小分子荧光探针，用于检测生物系统中 Cu+、Cu2+、Fe2+ 和 Fe3+


尽管过渡金属占人体总质量的不到 0.1%，但它们对基本生物过程有重大影响。其中，铜 （I） （Cu+）、铜 （II） （Cu2+）、亚铁离子 （Fe2+） 和铁离子 （Fe3+） 表现出许多重要的生化事件。因此，迫切需要通过现代分析技术精确监测它们的生物分布和浓度。特别是，小分子荧光探针能够实时检测这些过渡金属离子的动态波动和时空分布。在这项工作中，展示了 2020 年至 2024 年用于监测 Cu+、Cu2+、Fe2+ 和 Fe3+ 的大量代表性基于结合和活性的小分子荧光探针。此外，详细描述了这些荧光探针的分子设计策略、监测机制和生物学应用。此外，分析和讨论了各种类型的金属离子响应分子探针的优缺点。在这方面，我们的基本目标是鼓励开发用于检测过渡金属离子的创新小分子荧光探针。