A novel fluorescent probe for MGO detection and its application for monitoring root growth and drought stress in Arabidopsis thaliana

Methylglyoxal (MGO) is a vital signaling molecule that related to a variety of pathologies in both animals and plants. However, high levels of MGO are associated with several diseases. Therefore, developing a sensitive method for monitoring MGO levels in vivo and investigating its molecular mechanism is of great importance. Although most of the reported MGO fluorescence probes are designed for cells and animals, none have been used for study MGO levels in plants. Consequently, we herein report a fluorescent probe named CPDN , which is rational constructed utilizing coumarin derivatives and O -phenylenediamine as the fluorophore and the recognition group, respectively. In our study, CPDN have shown ability to selectively and sensitively detect MGO in solution and has been successfully exploited for imaging endogenous and exogenous MGO levels in living cells, zebrafish and Arabidopsis thaliana . Surprisingly, further investigation of CPDN has found that high MGO levels in Arabidopsis thaliana could inhibit the root growth. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the MGO levels in Arabidopsis thaliana increased when subjected to drought stress, which may be the main cause inhibiting root development and resulting in shorter root length. Therefore, the probe CPDN can be a powerful tool for studying the MGO levels under abiotic stress conditions and exploring its role in plant growth mechanisms. We believe that the application of CPDN in monitoring MGO levels in plants holds great values for deepening the understanding of plant growth mechanisms. • A novel fluorescent probe, CPDN , was developed for sensitive detection of MGO. • CPDN is capable of detecting endogenous MGO in zebrafish and Arabidopsis thaliana. • CPDN confirmed that elevated MGO inhibits primary root growth in drought conditions.