A library of fluorescent styryl dyes (320 compounds) was prepared by solid-phase chemistry. The dyes were screened for their detection of amyloid aggregates, which are associated with diseases such as Alzheimer's, and two of the 320 compounds screened, 2C40 and 2E10, showed promise as brain-imaging agents
■ Cell Image
Labeling of amyloid deposits with 2C40 in a slice of mouse brain (red, indicated by arrows). The image was taken with a charge-coupled device camera. c) Confocal microscopy image of amyloid deposits labeled with 2C40 (red) and ThS (blue); note that 2C40 preferentially labels the core of deposits.
Solid phase synthesis of styryl dye library and its application to amyloid sensors, Li, Q.; Lee, J. S.; Ha, C.; Park, C. B.; Yang G.; Gan, W. B.; Chang, Y. T.* Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. Engl., 2004, 43, 6331-6335.