Recent Advances of the Near-infrared Fluorescent aza-BODIPY Dyes

To date, since the single review about aza-BODIPYs was not recorded, this critical review focuses on the near-infrared aza-BODIPY dyes. It covers the advances using aza-BODIPY as a fluorophore in the design, synthesis and functionalizations of fluorescent chemosensors for pH, metal ions, anions, biomolecules and so forth since 2002. Keywords: aza-BODIPY, dye, near-infrared, probe, chemosensor, pH.