A benzothiazolium-based hemicyanine dye (probe 3) has been synthesized by attaching a morpholine group into a phenyl benzothiazolium skeleton. Probe 3 exhibited interesting photophysical characteristics including red emission (λ_em ≈600 nm), enhanced Stokes shift (Δλ ≈80 nm) and sensitivity to solvent polarity. Although the probe 3 exhibited almost no emission in aqueous environments (φ_fl ≈0.002), its fluorescence could be increased by ≈50 fold in organic solvents (φ_fl ≈0.10), making it possible for live cell imaging under wash-free conditions. Probe 3 exhibited excellent ability to visualize cellular mitochondria and lysosomes simultaneously, as observed from fluorescence confocal microscopy. In addition, probe 3 also exhibited good biocompatibility (calculated LC₅₀ > 20 µM) and high photostability.

通过将吗啉基团连接到苯基苯并噻唑骨架上，合成了基于苯并噻唑鎓的半花青染料（探针 3）。探针 3 表现出有趣的光物理特性，包括红光发射（λ _em ≈ 600 nm）、增强的斯托克斯位移（Δλ ≈ 80 nm）和对溶剂极性的敏感性。虽然探针 3 在水环境中几乎没有发射（φ _fl ≈ 0.002），但其荧光在有机溶剂中可以增加 ≈ 50 倍（φ _fl≈0.10), 使得在免洗条件下进行活细胞成像成为可能。从荧光共聚焦显微镜观察到，探针 3 表现出同时观察细胞线粒体和溶酶体的出色能力。此外，探针 3 还表现出良好的生物相容性（计算的 LC ₅₀  > 20 µM）和高光稳定性。