Chemical probes are essential tools to interrogate biological systems with high spatiotemporal resolution. Over the last decade, our group has made important contributions to 1) the fundamental behaviour of chemical fluorophores and the rational design of innovative optical imaging technologies, 2) the development of targeted probes to visualize disease-relevant subpopulations of immune cells in inflammatory diseases and cancer as well as the mechanisms of action of advanced therapeutics – such as antibody-drug conjugates -, and 3) the translation of healthcare technologies – including imaging agents and bedside tests – in collaboration with industrial partners, clinical teams, NHS and regulatory bodies.
A selection of recent references from our team are listed below.
On fluorescence chemistry innovation
Mendive-Tapia, L. et. al. Nat. Commun. 2016, 7, 10940.
Kaplaneris, N. et al. Nat. Commun. 2021, 12, 3389.
De Moliner, F. et al. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2023, 62, e202216231.
Cheng, Z. et al. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2024, 63, e202404587.
On targeted biosensors and probes for imaging immune cells and therapeutic action
Barth, N. et al. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2022, e202207508.
Reese et al. ACS Cent. Sci. 2024, 10, 143.
Bertolini et al. JACS 2024, 146, 30565.
Kuru et al. Nat. Commun. 2024, 15, 7531.
Nadal-Bufi et al. JACS 2025, 147, 7578.
On translational research
Barth N. et al. Nat. Commun. 2020, 11, 4027.
Scott, J. et al. Nat. Commun. 2022, 13, 2366.
Scott, J. et al. Nat. Biomed. Eng. 2025, accepted.
Marc Vendrell is Professor of Translational Chemistry and Biomedical Imaging at the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine in Edinburgh. His team has pioneered the design of smart chemical fluorophores for high-resolution optical imaging (>150 papers) and built an ambitious research programme linking physical and biomedical sciences through competitive funding -over £10M as PI (>£40M as co-I), including prestigious European ERC Consolidator and EIC Transition grants-. Vendrell is co-inventor of 12 patents, PI for 9 licensed technologies and collaborative projects with industry and Pharma, and he has contributed to founding two spin-out companies on therapeutics (InPepcide) and diagnostics (IDxSense). Vendrell has a strong record of mentoring and training the next generation of translational scientists, with several alumni holding independent positions in academia and industry. He has won some awards and distinctions, the latest being the Bader Prize for eminence in Organic Chemistry by The Royal Society of Chemistry in 2023 and elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, the Scottish national academy, in 2024. Vendrell currently heads the IRR Chemistry Hub at the College of Medicine in Edinburgh as one of the first global hubs for collaborative non-siloed chemical research to catalyse innovation in biomedical sciences and accelerate translational outputs.
