N-DBCO-N-bis(PEG2-C2-acid) | CAS 2110449-00-6

N-DBCO-N-bis(PEG2-C2-acid) is a DBCO-functionalized, PEGylated click chemistry reagent designed for strain-promoted azide–alkyne cycloaddition (SPAAC) bioconjugation. The molecule combines a cyclooctyne (DBCO) handle with PEG2 spacers and terminal carboxylic acid groups, enabling aqueous compatibility and subsequent coupling to amine-bearing biomolecules, peptides, or surfaces. This reagent is commonly used in research workflows that require stable, catalyst-free attachment of DBCO-bearing constructs to azide-functional targets, including probes, building blocks for materials, and imaging/diagnostic reagent platforms.

1. Biomolecule Conjugation

N-DBCO-N-bis(PEG2-C2-acid) is widely used to generate DBCO-equipped intermediates for labeling and modular assembly of azide-bearing biomolecules such as peptides, proteins, and oligonucleotide conjugates. The presence of PEG2 linkers helps reduce nonspecific interactions and improves solubility in typical bioconjugation buffers, while the carboxylic acid functionality supports downstream coupling strategies to introduce additional handles or to integrate the reagent into larger conjugate architectures. Researchers commonly incorporate this reagent when they need a robust SPAAC-compatible attachment point without relying on copper catalysts, supporting streamlined workflows for probe and reagent construction.

2. Surface And Material Functionalization

N-DBCO-N-bis(PEG2-C2-acid) is used to functionalize polymeric and inorganic materials that present azide groups, including azide-modified beads, membranes, and patterned surfaces used for affinity capture and assay development. The PEGylated framework contributes to improved surface wettability and spacing control, which can be important for maintaining accessibility of immobilized ligands or reporters. Carboxylic acid groups further enable integration into surface coating chemistries and multilayer assembly schemes, allowing the reagent to serve as a versatile DBCO-bearing linker in materials science and chemical biology tool development.

3. Molecular Imaging Probe Building

N-DBCO-N-bis(PEG2-C2-acid) supports the construction of imaging and detection reagents by enabling efficient SPAAC coupling between DBCO-functional building blocks and azide-functional reporter scaffolds. The dual PEG2-containing, acid-bearing design is particularly useful when a conjugate requires controlled hydrophilicity and defined attachment geometry to maintain probe behavior in aqueous media. Typical use cases include assembling multicomponent imaging probes where DBCO is introduced as a stable click handle early in the workflow, followed by SPAAC-based integration of the probe payload onto azide-tagged components.

4. Diagnostic Reagent Platforms

N-DBCO-N-bis(PEG2-C2-acid) is commonly adopted in diagnostic reagent development workflows that rely on modular conjugation and consistent reagent-to-reporter coupling. The reagent’s DBCO click functionality allows catalyst-free SPAAC attachment to azide-functional assay components, while the PEG2 spacing and terminal carboxylic acids help tune conjugate solubility and reduce aggregation during reagent formulation. Teams building multiplexed or multi-step assay reagents often use this linker to standardize the incorporation of click handles across different biomolecular targets, enabling repeatable assembly of detection reagents and assay-ready conjugates.