A near-infrared fluorescent probe for evaluating glutamyl transpeptidase fluctuation in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis cell and mice models

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), whose early diagnosis and effective treatment still remain the focus of clinical studies, is a chronic, irreversible and finally fatal pulmonary disease. Glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) has a potential relationship with the occurrence and development of IPF. Therefore, explore whether GGT can be applied as a biological indicator for the clinical identification and diagnosis of IPF, sensitive and accurate detection of GGT under physiological conditions is necessary. In this research, a new fluorescent probe Cy-GGT was exhibited for detecting GGT concentrations in pulmonary fibrosis cell and mice models. Cy-GGT was capable of rapidly and selectively detecting GGT in vitro. The probe was successfully applied for visualizing GGT in oxidative stress cell models, pulmonary fibrosis cells and mice models. The results revealed that intracellular GGT increased in the cells and mice models of pulmonary fibrosis. GGT plays a significant part in pulmonary fibrosis, and the GGT level abnormally expressed in the lung tissue may be employed as a potential biological indicator to diagnose IPF lesions. Furthermore, the discovery of the close relationship between IPF and GGT will provide a new idea for effective therapy of IPF in the future.