title: Facile Synthesis of Monofunctional Pentamethine Carbocyanine Fluorophores.
abstract: A high yield route to symmetric, conjugatable pentamethine carbocyanine dyes with far-red/near infrared (NIR) emission between 650 and 700 nm is reported. The dyes are prepared via condensation of indolium or benz[e]indolium inner salts with an alkyl carboxylic acid derivatized malonaldehyde dianil or alternatively in a one-pot reaction without isolation of the malonaldehyde intermediate. The fluorophores are water-soluble, have bright fluorescence emission, are easily prepared in good yield, and are promising candidates for use in a variety of biochemical and in vivo imaging applications.
authors.affiliation: Center for Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 13  Street, Charlestown, MA 02129.
authors.forename: Fangwei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.forename: Hushan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Lee
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Josephson
authors.forename: Ralph
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Weissleder
authors.forename: Scott A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Hilderbrand