A fluorescent probe for estimation of adenosine diphosphate and monitoring of glucose metabolism.

An ADP selective fluorescent probe working in aqueous medium was identified and the change in fluorescence as a function of ADP concentration was standardized. Using this probe, all the steps of glycolysis coupled with ATP/ADP inter-conversion and oxidative breakdown of pyruvate in the mitochondria were monitored and the consumption/production of ATP/ADP at each step was quantified. The quantity of ADP present in the mitochondria, taken from different body parts of a pig, was also determined. It is hypothesized that an appropriate modification of the technique may provide a diagnostic tool for monitoring biochemical pathways as well as for quick estimation of ADP in the mitochondria and other cell organelles.