Que Group Paper Featured in JACS Young Investigators Virtual Issue

  "¹⁹F PARASHIFT Probes for Magnetic Resonance Detection of H₂O₂ and Peroxidase Activity," published by the Emily Que lab, is featured in the Journal of the American Chemical Society Young Investigators Virtual Issue 2019. The issue highlights premier research by outstanding young investigators published in 2018 in JACS. In this paper, Que describes fluorine (¹⁹F) magnetic resonance imaging agents that use a Co(II)/Co(III) redox couple to detect the presence of reactive oxygen species and/or oxidative enzymes. Interestingly, large changes in both 19F relaxation and chemical shift properties occur following oxidation from Co(II) to Co(III) due to the complex converting from paramagnetic to diamagnetic. This class of molecules has potential applications in the design of diagnostic agents for neurodegenerative diseases, inflammation, atherosclerosis, and other diseases associated with oxidative stress. This work was led by Que lab post-doc Dr. Meng Yu with support from graduate students Da Xie and José Enriquez, and undergraduate Bailey Bouley.