Spectroscopic and photophysical investigations on the nature of localization of rhodamine-123 and its dibromo derivative in different cell lines

Steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopic properties of rhodamine-123 (rh123) and 4,5-dibromorhodamine methyl ester (dbr123) bound to different cell lines are evaluated. Studies are also performed on the dye bound to extracted mitochondria. Results are compared with those obtained in homogeneous and microheterogeneous media. Results suggest that these dyes can specifically bind only with cell mitochondria. As a result of binding, excitation and emission spectra are red shifted by 10 to 12 nm. The fluorescence decay of these dyes bound to mitochondria shows two lifetimes. Values are about 4.0 and 2.0 ns forrh123 and about 1.9 and 0.5 ns fordbr123. Detailed global analysis of emission wavelength and dye concentration dependences of the fluorescence decay is performed. Results indicate that these dyes are bound to two different binding sites at mitochondria. The decay-associated fluorescence spectrum for the species corresponding to each binding site is recovered. Species1, corresponding to the longer lifetime, is found to be more red shifted compared to species2. The fluorescence of species2 is heavily quenched. The origin of this quenching is explained in terms of resonance energy transfer between donor species2 and acceptor species1. The possible nature of the two binding sites is also discussed.     

Characterization of a Series of Far Red Absorbing Perylene Diones: A New Class of Fluorescent Probes for Biological Applications

The far red region of the spectrum is increasingly being utilised in many applications in the biosciences. However, apart from the cyanine group of dyes, there are relatively few far red fluorescent probes available which are of practical use. We have synthesised and characterised a new class of far red fluorescent probes based on the perylene dione chromophore. The 2,10 di-substituted perylene diones possess broad absorption spectra (>90 nm bandwidths), large Stokes shifts (>60 nm) and quantum yields of up to 0.5 with a maximum absorption at 610–640 nm in organic solvents or in solutions of non-ionic detergents. A number of derivatives have been synthesised that can be used as membrane probes, as chromogenic substrates for alkaline phosphatase, and for the labelling of macromolecules such as proteins and DNA. These novel far red fluorophores have potential applications in diagnostic and research applications.     

Application of commercially available fluorophores as triplet spin probes in EPR spectroscopy

ABSTRACT

In recent years, photoexcited molecular triplet states became increasingly popular in magnetic resonance, e.g. as spin probes to measure distances relative to other electron-paramagnetic species or as moieties that transfer light-generated electron–spin polarisation of the triplet state to surrounding magnetic nuclei. In this study, the triplet states of three commercially available dyes, Erythrosin B, Rose Bengal and Atto Thio 12, all typically utilised as fluorophores in optical spectroscopies and microscopies, are investigated in aqueous solutions by using transient absorption spectroscopy and transient electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). From these methods, the triplet-state lifetimes as well as their zero-field splitting parameters, D and E, which reflect the electronic structures of the triplet state wavefunctions, were obtained. Atto Thio 12 exhibits much smaller D and E values as compared to Rose Bengal and Erythrosin B. On the basis of density functional theory calculations of the triplets’ energy splittings at zero magnetic field, these findings were rationalised. As a proof of concept for applications, the triplet-state properties of Atto Thio 12 bound to an aptamer were also determined and the results are discussed.     

Solvatochromic Studies of Fluorescent Azo Dyes: Kamlet-Taft (π*, α and β) and Catalan (Spp, SA and SB) Solvent Scales Approach

A new metal ion-responsive azo-based fluorescent probes have been synthesized and characterized by NMR spectral techniques. Steady-state fluorometric study has been used to analyze the spectroscopic and photophysical characteristics of dye derivatives in various solvents. The fluorescence properties of these dyes are strongly solvent dependent, the wavelength of maximum fluorescence emission shifts to the red. The Kamlet-Taft and Catalan’s solvent scales were found to be the most suitable for describing the solvatochromic shifts of the absorption and fluorescence emission. The hydroxy substituted azo dye formed complexes with several metal ions (Co²⁺, Hg²⁺, Ni²⁺ and Cu²⁺) and fluorescence quenching with metal ions reveal that it can be used as a new fluorescence sensor to detect the Cu²⁺ ion.     

Red Emitting Coumarin—Azo Dyes : Synthesis,Characterization, Linear and Non-linear Optical Properties-Experimental and Computational Approach

The coumarin molecules with 7-(N,N-diethylamino) substitution and aryl azo (Ar–N=N-) at 3-position were synthesized, by reacting diazonium salt of substituted amines and 7-(N, N-diethylamino)-4-hydroxy coumarin under basic conditions. They were found to be fluorescent despite the presence of azo group. The azo group rotation was blocked by complexing with -BF₂, so as to get a red shift in absorption. The azo molecules show charge transfer, whereas BF₂-complexes do not. The dipole moment ratios between the ground and excited states calculated suggest highly polar excited state and an intra-molecular charge transfer at the excited state in the case of azo dyes. The NLO properties were calculated by solvatochromic method and computationally. Second order hyperpolarizability was found to be 46 to 1083 times more than urea. DFT and TDTDF calculations were performed to understand the electronic properties of the molecules at the ground as well as excited states.     

Single-beam Z-scan measurement of the third-order optical nonlinearities of triarylmethane dyes

Solid-state dye-doped polymers are an attractive alternative to the conventional liquid-dye solutions. The search for new materials which have potential application in optoelectronic devices has lead us to probe the organic dyes. The solid state being a better medium when compared to a liquid medium has lead to the incorporation of dyes in the polymer matrix. The study of nonlinear characteristics of dyes in polymeric media is essential for developing such potential application devices. In this paper, the third-order nonlinear optical properties of three dyes from the Triarylmethane family were measured in 1-Butanol and in dye-doped polymer films by the Z-scan technique using a cw diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser at 532 nm. The Z-scan technique has also been used to present the observation of a nonlinear refractive index resulting from the photochromism of one of the dyes. These materials exhibit a large negative optical nonlinearity resulting due to the thermal effect. The relative contributions from the nonlinear absorption (NLA) and nonlinear refraction (NLR) are dependent on the chemical structure and linear absorption of the dyes. The dyes exhibited a nonlinear refractive coefficient n ₂, a nonlinear absorption coefficient β, and susceptibility x⁽³⁾ on the order of 10^?8 cm²/W, 10^?4 cm/W, and 10^?6 esu, respectively, in both liquid and solid media. The results show that these dyes have potential applications in nonlinear optics.     

Fluorescent properties of novel dendrimer dyes based on thiazole orange

In this paper, polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers with active amino group of some generations (G=0.5-2) were prepared from commercial aminoacetaldehyde diethyl acetal by the divergent method. After that, thiazole orange (TO) with -COOH was incorporated with dendrimers of G=1 and 2 to afford novel dendrimer-TO dyes. The fluorescent properties studies showed that the fluorescent intensity of the same concentration of dendrimer-TO (G=2) was higher than that of the dendrimer-TO (G=1), and both of them were much stronger than free TO with -COOH. There was a fluorescent enhancement of the dendrimer dyes compared with free dye. The dendrimer dyes were of well-defined chemical structure,with little aggregation and self-quenching as well as good fluorescence properties of good stability, high intensity and sensitivity, which could be used in labeling cancer cells and further in diagnosis and detection of early-stage tumors.     

Fluorescence Investigation of Interactions Between Novel Benzanthrone Dyes and Lysozyme Amyloid Fibrils

A series of novel fluorescent benzanthrone dyes have been tested for their ability to identify and characterize fibrillar aggregates of lysozyme prepared by protein denaturation in concentrated ethanol solution (F_eth) or acidic buffer (F_ac). Quantitative parameters of the dye association with native and fibrillar protein have been derived from the results of fluorimetric titration. The binding characteristics proved to be different for F_eth- and F_ac-bound benzanthrones, highlighting the dye sensitivity to the distinctions in fibril morphology. By comparing the dye preference to fibrillar protein aggregates, AM2, A8 and A6 were selected as the most prospective amyloid tracers. Based on the analysis of red edge excitation shifts and fluorescence lifetimes of the amyloid-bound dyes it was assumed that surface grooves or dry “steric zipper” interface are potential fibril binding sites for the novel fluorophores.     

Synthesis of Novel Carbazole based Styryl: Rational Approach for Photophysical Properties and TD-DFT

The synthesis and solvatochromic behavior of four novel carbazole based fluorescent styryl dyes were explained. In chlorinated solvents such as DCM and chloroform, these dyes show bathochromic shift in their absorption as well as emission. The styryl dyes 6b and 6c show solid state yellow fluorescence. DFT and TD-DFT computations were performed to study structural, molecular, electronic and photophysical properties of these dyes. The computed absorption and emission wavelength values are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results. The photophysical properties of these 1-styryl carbazole dyes are also compared with the recently reported 3-styrl carbazole dyes. The unique behavior of dye 6d is well explained by its optimized geometry found in the excited state. Ratio of ground to excited state dipole moment of the synthesized novel styryl compounds were calculated by Bakhshiev and Bilot-Kawski correlations.     

Synthesis and Spectra of a Kind of Novel Longer-Wavelength Benzoxazole Indole Styryl Cyanine Dye with a Carbazole-Bridged Chain

Based on cyanine dye probe oxazole yellow (YO) and Cy₃, a series of novel styryl cyanine dyes were designed and synthesized. Carbazole was inserted into the structures of YO and Cy₃ to act as a bridge to link the benzoxazole and indole group. This modification resulted in a novel kind of benzoxazole indole styryl cyanine dye with a carbazole-bridged chain. The dyes were characterized by ¹HNMR and MS. The spectra of the novel dyes were also performed and the results showed that the maximum emission wavelength of the carbazole styryl cyanine dye was shifted red, the Stokes shift increased and the fluorescence intensity enhanced compared with those of YO and Cy₃. These results indicated that the novel dye could be used as an excellent fluorescent probe in biological labeling.     

AIE Based Coumarin Chromophore - Evaluation and Correlation Between Solvatochromism and Solvent Polarity Parameters

A new class of red emitting extensively conjugated donor-π-acceptor type dyes bearing coumarin units have been synthesized by condensation of 7-(diethylamino)-2-oxo-2 H-chromene-3-carbaldehyde with different active methylenes. All the dyes are characterized by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR and HRMS spectroscopy. The photophysical behaviour and the relation between structure and properties of the coumarin “push–pull” derivatives were investigated experimentally. The dyes exhibited positive solvatochromism and solvatofluorism in solution of varying polarity. These coumarin dyes show aggregation induced emission properties with red emitting fluorescence. They show absorption in the range of 501–528 and emission in the range of 547–630 nm. We evaluated photophysical properties of coumarin dyes using solvotochromism and solvent dependent shift in the emission wavelength. All the synthesized coumarin dyes COS1-COS4 are showing very good solvatochromic properties.     

Novel Fluorescent Molecular Clips: Selective Recognition Towards Fe<Superscript>3+</Superscript> in Aqueous Solution

In this paper, we report the synthesis, characterization and Fe³⁺-sensing properties of a series of new artificial fluorescent molecular clips, and structure of clip 1 is confirmed by X-ray crystallography. All these molecular clips had the ability to bind and sense Fe³⁺ selectively through decrease fluorescence responses in THF-MeOH-Water. Fluorimetric titration experiment indicated that the quenching of these compounds’ fluorescence upon Fe³⁺ probably arises from the electron/energy transfer between Fe³⁺ and the excited chemosensors. The limit of detection, linear concentration range and selectivity of the fluorescent molecular clips were evaluated in this study as well.     

Sm-activated gadolinium molybdate: an intense red-emitting phosphor for solid-state lighting based on InGaN LEDs

Sm³⁺-activated gadolinium molybdate, Gd₂(MoO₄)₃:Sm³⁺ red-emitting phosphor was prepared by conventional solid-state method. The structure, morphology, and luminescent properties of these powder samples have been investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and fluorescent spectrophotometry, respectively. The as-obtained phosphor has a monoclinic structure with single crystalline phase. Its mean particle size is about 6-8 μm with pseudo-pompon shape and large surface area, which is suitable for manufacture of white LEDs. The phosphor can be efficiently excited by incident light of 348-445 nm, well matched with the output wavelength of a near-UV InGaN-based chip, and re-emits an intense red light peaking at 650 nm. By combing this phosphor with a 405 nm-emitting InGaN chip, a red LED was fabricated, so that the applicability of this novel phosphor to white LEDs was confirmed. It is considered to be an efficient red-emitting conversion phosphor for solid-state lighting based on InGaN LEDs.     

Solid-state Fluorescence Emission and Second-Order Nonlinear Optical Properties of Coumarin-based Fluorophores

Some coumarin-based fluorophores were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR and MS. The solid-state photoluminescence properties were studied. The benzocoumarins display interesting solid-state emission properties with an emission at wavelengths ranging from 532 to 645 nm, when excited by a 325 nm helium–cadmium laser at room temperature. The results demonstrated that the luminescent colors can be tuned from green to red by simply varying molecular structure. The benzocoumarin-phenyl boronic acid hybrid, 4-(3-oxo-3-(2 -oxo-2H-1-naphtho[2,1-b]pyran-3-yl)-prop-1-enyl)phenyl boronic acid, showed obvious fluorescence response to water. Whereas the free compound was very weakly fluorescent in tetrahydrofuran (THF), the addition of water leads to an appearance of strong blue-green fluorescence and a dramatic increase of emission intensity. Besides, 3-(3-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-prop-2-enoyl)-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one exhibited second order nonlinear optical response to laser pulses. A noticeable second harmonic generation (SHG) under pulsed excitation at 1064 nm was observed. Preliminary nonlinear measurements on powder samples showed that the second harmonic generation efficiency is roughly 5.8 times that of potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP).     

SYNTHESIS AND SPECTROSCOPIC PROPERTIES OF HIGHLY PURE PERYLENE FLUORESCENT DYES

Two new perylene dye, N, N′-bis-(aminododecyl)-3, 4, 9, 10-perylenebis (dicarboximide) (1) and N, N′-bis-(4-chlorophenyl)-3, 4, 9, 10-perylenebis (dicarboximide) have been synthesized. Because the solubility of perylene derivatives is very low, their synthesis and purification are difficult. The imides 1 and 2 are easily prepared with high yield. Dye 2 has a lower density than the density of air. They are highly fluorescent and very photostable dyes. With high fluorescent quantum yield they are suggested as new convenient standards for the fluorescence quantum yield measurements in 500–650 nm region. The report includes the electronic absorption and emission spectra, extinction coefficients and fluorescence quantum yields. Applications of the dyes are discussed.     

Synthesis of BODIPY Derivatives Substituted with Various Bioconjugatable Linker Groups: A Construction Kit for Fluorescent Labeling of Receptor Ligands

The goal of the present study was to design small, functionalized green-emitting BODIPY dyes, which can readily be coupled to target molecules such as receptor ligands, or even be integrated into their pharmacophores. A simple two-step one-pot procedure starting from 2,4-dimethylpyrrole and ω-bromoalkylcarboxylic acid chlorides was used to obtain new ω-bromoalkyl-substituted BODIPY fluorophores (1a–1f) connected via alkyl spacers of different length to the 8-position of the fluorescent dye. The addition of radical inhibitors reduced the amount of side products. The ω-bromoalkyl-substituted BODIPYs were further converted to introduce various functional groups: iodo-substituted dyes were obtained by Finkelstein reaction in excellent yields; microwave-assisted reaction with methanolic ammonia led to fast and clean conversion to the amino-substituted dyes; a hydroxyl-substituted derivative was prepared by reaction with sodium ethylate, and thiol-substituted BODIPYs were obtained by reaction of 1a–1f with potassium thioacetate followed by alkaline cleavage of the thioesters. Water-soluble derivatives were prepared by introducing sulfonate groups into the 2- and 6-position of the BODIPY core. The synthesized BODIPY derivatives showed high fluorescent yields and appeared to be stable under basic, reducing and oxidative conditions. As a proof of concept, 2-thioadenosine was alkylated with bromoethyl-BODIPY 1b. The resulting fluorescent 2-substituted adenosine derivative 15 displayed selectivity for the A₃ adenosine receptor (ARs) over the other AR subtypes, showed agonistic activity, and may thus become a useful tool for studying A₃ARs, or a lead structure for further optimization. The new functionalized dyes may be widely used for fluorescent labeling allowing the investigation of biological targets and processes.     

NLOphoric Red Emitting Bis Coumarins with O-BF<Subscript>2</Subscript>-O core - Synthesis,Photophysical Properties and DFT Studies

The red emitting dyes were synthesized by employing coumarin core as a donor and boron-bonded coumarin as an acceptor. 7-(N,N-Diethylamino)-coumarin 3-aldehyde was reacted with 3-acetyl-4-hydroxy-coumarin, 7-(N,N-diethylamino)-3-acetyl-4-hydroxy-coumarin and 3-acetyl-4-hydroxy-1-methyl-quinolone to form the corresponding chalcones. The synthesized chalcones were though red shifted as compared to the parent coumarin, and were not emitting in red region. The BF₂-complexation was used as a tool to introduce a red shift in the molecules. The BF₂-complexes synthesized were found to be red emitting and show higher one photon absorption cross section. The solvatochromism shown by these dyes was studied in the light of solvent polarity parameters. DFT calculations were used to understand the photophysical properties of the synthesized dyes. NLO properties of the dyes were estimated by solvatochromic and computational methods. All the molecules synthesized were characterised with the HRMS and NMR spectral Analysis.     

Novel,Monomeric Cyanine Dyes as Reporters for DNA Helicase Activity

The dimeric cyanine dyes, YOYO-1 and TOTO-1, are widely used as DNA probes because of their excellent fluorescent properties. They have a higher fluorescence quantum yield than ethidium homodimer, DAPI and Hoechst dyes and bind to double-stranded DNA with high affinity. However, these dyes are limited by heterogeneous staining at high dye loading, photocleavage of DNA under extended illumination, nicking of DNA, and inhibition of the activity of DNA binding enzymes. To overcome these limitations, seven novel cyanine dyes (Cyan-2, DC-21, DM, DM-1, DMB-2OH, SH-0367, SH1015-OH) were synthesized and tested for fluorescence emission, resistance to displacement by Mg²⁺, and the ability to function as reporters for DNA unwinding. Results show that Cyan-2, DM-1, SH-0367 and SH1015-OH formed highly fluorescent complexes with dsDNA. Of these, only Cyan-2 and DM-1 exhibited a large fluorescence enhancement in buffers, and were resistant to displacement by Mg²⁺. The potential of these two dyes to function as reporter molecules was evaluated using continuous fluorescence, DNA helicase assays. The rate of DNA unwinding was not significantly affected by either of these two dyes. Therefore, Cyan-2 and DM-1 form the basis for the synthesis of novel cyanine dyes with the potential to overcome the limitations of YOYO-1 and TOTO-1.     

Obviously Enhanced Fluorescent Signal of Core-Shell Nanostructures through Simultaneous Regulation of Spectral Overlap and Shell Thickness for Imaging and Photothermal Therapy of Ovarian Cancer Cells

In this research, by simultaneously regulating the two major factors affecting the plasmonic enhanced fluorescence (PEF), spectral overlap and the distance between the fluororophores and the noble metal nanoparticles, a significantly enhanced fluorescent signal is achieved. Core-shell nanostructures composed of aspect ratio (AR) adjustable gold nanorods (GNRs) and various thickness of SiO₂ are prepared and the decorated fluorophores are realized optimized PEF. A typical stimuli-responsive conjugated polymer, polydiacetylene (PDA), and a near-infrared (NIR) dye Cy5.5 are selected as fluorophores and their fluorescent signal are enhanced 7.26 and 4.41 times, respectively. Based on the optimized optical properties, a multifunctional antibody modified Mab-Cy5.5-GNRs@SiO₂ is successfully demonstrated the targeting, imaging, and photothermal therapy (PTT) effects on SKOV-3 ovarian cancer cells.     

Synthesis and Fluorescence Studies of Some New Fluorophores and Their Effect on Hybridization of Oligodeoxyribonucleotides

Some novel fluorophores, viz. 6-(6-isobutyrylamino-1,3-dioxo-1H,3H-benzo[de]isoquinolin-2-yl)-hexanoic acid (1), 6-(6-dimethylamino-1,3-dioxo-1H, 3H-benzo[de]isoquinolin-2-yl)-hexanoic acid (2), 6-(6-benzoylamino-1, 3-dioxo-1H, 3H-benzo[de]isoquinolin-2-yl)-hexanoic acid (3), 6-(6-amino-1-oxo-1H, 3H-benzo[de]isoquinolin-2-yl)-hexanoic acid (4) and 6-(6-amino-1H,3H-benzo[de] isoquinolin-2-yl)-hexanoic acid (5) have been designed, synthesized and characterized. Their comparative fluorescence has been studied in different organic solvents and aqueous solutions containing inorganic ions. Out of these, two fluorophores, 1 and 2 have been used for labelling of nucleosides which were finally converted into their phosphoramidites, and used for labelling of oligodeoxyribonucleotides through covalent attachment. These fluorophores after attachment on oligodeoxyribonucleotides showed good fluorescence signals and higher hybridisation affinity than unlabelled oligodeoxyribonucleotides.