Sondy fluorescencyjne typu „light up” do detekcji i obrazowania G-kwadrupleksów in vitro i in vivo. Cz. 1 i 2

G-quadruplexes are non-canonical guanosine rich four stranded nucleic acids structures consisting of at least two or more G-tetrads stabilized by an array of Hoogsteen hydrogend bonds and monovalent cations. The distinguishing feature of the G-quadruplexes is their high thermal stability and structural polymorphism in aqueous media. In parallel, a great number of GQ structures have been extensively surveyed ex vivo by means of biophysical techniques such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography. Accumulating evidence suggesting that G-quadruplexes play essential role in a numerous biological processes in vivo, including DNA replication and transcription, RNA translation as well as genomic maintenance. Consequently, G-quadruplexes has attracted attention as therapeutic targets in cancer or hereditary diseases as well as molecular target in cellular biology. Study on G-quadruplexes:ligand interaction by NMR, CD, UV and fluorescence spectroscopy in vitro or in vivo has become an intensive research work area of many groups in recent years. Nowadays, there are available large amount of organic compounds that selectively bind to G-quadruplexes and their photophysical and kinetic properties were comprehensively characterized but only few of them are endowed with fluorescence properties that could be applicable as fluorescent probes in cellular biology or in vitro detection. Interestingly, the group of these fluorescent probes is characterized by a vast structural diverisity resulting from the different way of interaction with G-quadruplexes as well as G-quadruplex polymorphism. This review focuses on the G-quadruplex-selective light up fluorescent probes that have been employed for in vitro detection as well as cellular imaging along with a summary of the key photophysical, biophysical, and biological properties of reported examples.