A Novel Fluorescent Probe Strategy Activated by β-Glucuronidase for Assisting Surgical Resection of Liver Cancer

Liver cancer is a primary malignant tumor with a very high fatality rate, which has seriously threatened human health and life. In normal hepatocellular lesions, β-glucuronidase (GLU) activity in liver cancer tissues is significantly increased. Therefore, GLU has become one of the important biomarkers of primary liver cancer. Here, a series of fluorescent probes (DCDH, DCDCH₃, DCDOCH₃, and DCDNO₂) for early diagnosis of liver cancer and auxiliary surgical resection were successfully synthesized. Since the electron-withdrawing group -NO₂ connected to the probe DCDNO₂ accelerates the rapid cleavage of the glycosidic bond, DCDNO₂ exhibits superior fluorescence properties that are more sensitive and rapid than the other three probes DCDH, DCDCH₃, and DCDOCH₃ when detecting GLU. DCDNO₂ has been well-applied in real-time fluorescent visualization imaging for the detection of GLU activity in liver cancer cells and tumor tissues. In addition, DCDNO₂ has also been successfully used in the early diagnosis of liver cancer and real-time imaging to guide the surgical resection of liver cancer tumors. Therefore, DCDNO₂ has great potential for development in bioclinical medicine for the early detection and treatment of liver cancer.