Push–pull chromophores for rapid cancer detection via smartphone-based tumor microenvironment sensing

Date

2026-12-01

Author

Yilmaz, Ilayda
Moulahoum, Hichem
Erden, Kübra
Yıldırım, Erol
Tok, Kerem
Aksu, Didem
Akcam, Tevfik Ilker
Zihnioğlu, Figen
Turhan, Kutsal
Dengiz, Çağatay
Soylemez, Saniye
Timur, Suna

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Smartphone-based imaging offers a low-cost and portable point-of-care solution to meet the need for simple tools enabling rapid and accessible detection of biochemical alterations in the tumor microenvironment (TME). In this study, two new push–pull chromophores were designed to respond to TME acidosis and elevated lactate-related metabolic conditions for sensing TME-associated biochemical changes in clinically relevant samples. The compounds were synthesized using click-type [2 + 2] cycloaddition–retroelectrocyclization (CA–RE) and fully characterized by FTIR, 1H and 13C NMR, HR-MS, and UV/Vis spectroscopy, and their sensing behavior was further supported by computational studies. Their performance was evaluated by UV/Vis spectroscopy and smartphone-based RGB analysis under controlled pH (4.0–8.0) and lactic acid (0–30 mM) conditions, enabling rapid discrimination between cancerous (A549, MCF-7, Caco-2) and non-cancerous (CCL-171) cells within 15 min. When applied to pleural fluid samples from patients with adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and metastatic endometrial carcinoma, the sensors effectively detected postoperative biochemical changes, demonstrating that rationally designed chromophores combined with smartphone-based readouts enable rapid, low-cost, and clinically relevant biochemical profiling of tumor-associated microenvironments.

Subject Keywords

Cancer-associated biochemical monitoring, Chromophores, Colorimetric biosensors, Smartphone detection, Tumor microenvironment

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/120398

Collections

Department of Chemistry, Article