In vivo monitoring of endogenous hydrogen sulfide and evaluation of natural protectants in liver injury mice using a highly selective bioluminescent probe

Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) is an essential endogenous gasotransmitter that can regulate a wide range of physiological processes. However, overproduction of H₂S is toxic to humans and causes liver injury, cardiovascular diseases, central nervous system-related disease, diabetes, even cancer. Hence, designing efficient imaging probes for real-time monitoring of the alterations in endogenous H₂S is a viable tactic for accurate diagnosis of these diseases. In this work, a bioluminescence (BL) probe, namely Luc-H₂S, has been developed to achieve H₂S detection in vitro and in vivo. This sensing probe enables a selective BL turn-on response to H₂S, and showcases excellent sensitivity with a low detection limit (LOD = 0.337 μM). Furthermore, Luc-H₂S has been successfully applied in BL imaging of endogenous H₂S in cells, tumor-bearing mice and drug-induced liver injury mice. More importantly, Luc-H₂S is utilized to accurately evaluate the protective effects of natural products against alcohol-induced liver injury through monitoring of the H₂S fluctuations. We envision that Luc-H₂S holds promise as a powerful imaging tool for diagnosis of H₂S-mediated diseases and evaluation of drug therapy.