Fluorescent Copper Probe Inhibiting Aβ1–16-Copper(II)-Catalyzed Intracellular Reactive Oxygen Species Production

A variety of fluorescent probes are proposed to monitor the intracellular copper content. So far, none of the probes have been evaluated for their potential to inhibit copper-associated intracellular oxidative stress. Herein, we studied the ability of a fluorescent copper probe, OBEP-CS1, to inhibit intracellular oxidative stress associated with an amyloid β (Aβ) peptide–copper complex. The data showed that OBEP-CS1 completely inhibits the copper-catalyzed oxidation as well as decarboxylation/deamination of Aβ1–16. Moreover, the cell imaging experiments confirmed that OBEP-CS1 can inhibit Aβ-CuII-catalyzed reactive oxygen species production in SH-SY5Y cells. We also demonstrated that Aβ1–16 peptide can bind intracellular copper and thereby exert oxidative stress.