Patent 9547009 was granted and assigned to Academia Sinica on January, 2017 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Provided are benzocyclooctyne compounds of formula (I). These compounds undergo strain-promoted azide-alkyne cyclo additions (SPAAC) without presence of toxic metal catalysts. The provided compounds are useful for diagnosis and imaging of azide-containing molecules. Methods for detection and imaging biomolecules using compounds of the present disclosure are disclosed.