Development of phenyl oligoene-type firefly luciferin analogues with extended π-electronic conjugation for near-infrared bioluminescence

Firefly bioluminescence, which produces high-efficiency light, is widely used in life science applications. For in vivo bioluminescence imaging, the near-infrared range (650–900 nm) is suitable because of its high permeability in deep biological tissues. In this study, we synthesized new luciferin analogues that emit light at 765 nm using Photinus pyralis luciferase. Firefly bioluminescence, which produces high-efficiency light, is widely used in life science applications. For in vivo bioluminescence imaging, the near-infrared range (650–900 nm) is suitable because of its high permeability in deep biological tissues. In this study, we synthesized new luciferin analogues that emit light at 765 nm using Photinus pyralis luciferase.