A benzoxazole functionalized fluorescent probe for selective Fe3+ detection and intracellular imaging in living cells

A rhodamine based 2-aminobenzoxazole functionalized probe was presented for reversible detection of Fe3+ driven by the coordination of Fe3+ to 2-aminobenzoxazole that resulted in strong fluorescence emission and color change. Fluorescent imaging in living L929 and MG-63 cells offered a promising candidate for mapping Fe3+ in biological samples.