IRDye® 650 DBCO

IRDye® 650 DBCO is an IRDye 650 fluorophore conjugated to a DBCO (dibenzocyclooctyne) strained-alkyne handle, enabling copper-free strain-promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition (SPAAC) for fluorescent bioconjugation. The dye's far-red emission supports low background imaging in many fluorescence workflows, while the DBCO functionality allows efficient attachment to azide-bearing biomolecules, targeting ligands, and materials. This combination is frequently used to build fluorescent conjugates for imaging, labeling, and assay development where a stable, cell-compatible fluorophore tag is required.

1. Biomolecule Labeling

IRDye® 650 DBCO is used to fluorescently label proteins, peptides, and other azide-functional biomolecules through SPAAC, producing far-red conjugates for downstream imaging and analytical workflows. Researchers commonly incorporate this reagent into labeling strategies for antibody fragments, affinity binders, enzyme conjugates, and carrier proteins, where the DBCO group provides a convenient click handle without requiring copper catalysts. The resulting IRDye 650-tagged conjugates are typically used in fluorescence microscopy, gel-based fluorescence readouts, and imaging experiments that benefit from reduced spectral overlap with common green channels.

2. Fluorescent Probe Construction

IRDye® 650 DBCO serves as a practical building block for constructing fluorescent probes and molecular imaging reagents by attaching the IRDye 650 fluorophore to azide-containing probe scaffolds. In chemical biology and biomaterials research, teams use it to generate labeled ligands, multicomponent probe assemblies, and fluorescent reporters for monitoring binding events or tracking biomolecular interactions. The DBCO handle supports modular probe design, allowing researchers to swap targeting elements by preparing different azide-functional components while keeping the same far-red fluorophore for consistent readout across experiments.

3. Surface Functionalization

IRDye® 650 DBCO is applied in biomaterials and surface engineering workflows to introduce far-red fluorescence onto azide-functional surfaces, coatings, and polymer matrices. Lab groups use the reagent to create fluorescently traceable materials for microscopy-based localization studies, material uptake experiments, and surface characterization where visual confirmation of coating or functionalization is required. By coupling the DBCO group to azide groups on the material, researchers can generate stable fluorescent surfaces that are compatible with many optical imaging setups used in materials science and chemical biology.

4. Flow Cytometry Tracing

IRDye® 650 DBCO is used as a far-red fluorescence tag for labeling cells or cell-associated components when an azide-bearing labeling partner is available. In fluorescence-based cell analysis workflows, investigators generate IRDye 650 conjugates to trace biomolecular binding, quantify labeling intensity, or follow conjugate association with cell surfaces using flow cytometry channels configured for far-red detection. This application leverages the dye's emission in the far-red region to support multicolor panels where green and red channels may already be occupied.