A novel glutathione-Triggered theranostic prodrug for anticancer and imaging in living cells

Abstract

A novel theranostic prodrug was designed and synthesized by conjugating a naphthalimide derivative with Vitamin D2via a disulfide linker. The prodrug featured a highly selective detection process for glutathione (GSH) and showed a red-shifted fluorescence within 30 min. Notably, it also exhibited antitumor activity similar to Vitamin D2 and could be monitored by cellular imaging.