Biological Sensing and Imaging Using Conjugated Polymers and Peptide Substrates

Peptides have been widely applied as targeting elements or enzyme-substrates in biological sensing and imaging. Conjugated Polymers (CPs) have emerged as a novel biosensing material and received considerable attention due to their excellent light absorption, strong fluorescence emission, as well as amplified quenching properties. In this review, we summarize the recent advances of using CPs and peptide substrates in biosensing and bioimaging. After a brief introduction of the advantages of CPs and peptide substrates, different sensing designs and mechanisms are discussed based on peptides’ structures and functions, including targeting recognition elements, enzyme-substrates, and cell-penetrating elements. Applications of CPs and peptides in fluorescent imaging and Raman imaging in living cells are subsequently reviewed.