Assembly of 1H-Isoindole Derivatives by Selective Carbon-Nitrogen Triple Bond Activation: Access to Aggregation-Induced Emission Fluorophores for Lipid Droplets Imaging

A novel strategy has been established to assemble a series of single (Z)- or (E)-1H-isoindole derivatives through selectively and sequentially activating carbon-nitrogen triple bonds in a multicomponent system containing various nucleophilic and electrophilic sites. The reaction provides efficient access to structurally unique fluorophores with aggregation-induced emission characteristics. These new fluorophores show modulatable fluorescence wavelengths and efficiencies, and have excellent potentials to specifically light up lipid droplets (LDs) in living cells with bright fluorescence, low cytotoxicity and better photostability than commercially available LDs-specific dyes.