Photostable and biocompatible AIE-active conjugated polyelectrolytes for efficient heparin detection and specific lysosome labelling

A series of new conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) with emissive tetraphenylethene-containing backbones and specific targeting pendants are synthesized and characterized. These new CPEs exhibit prominent aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties, high photostability and low cytotoxicity, and can efficiently detect heparin and stain lysosomes in living cells.