Synthesis of psoralens and analogues.

This review presents briefly the various classical syntheses of psoralens and angelicins which generally start from preformed suitably substituted coumarin or benzofuran derivatives. However, the discovery of the photocyclo-C-4 addition of psoralens to pyrimidine bases prompted new developments in this area. In particular, improved synthesis of psoralens and substituted angelicins, and synthesis of new analogues such as furochromenes, pyridopsoralens, pyrano benzopyrandiones, dioxinocoumarins and aza-psoralens were described recently. This review focuses on the chemical syntheses of these various compounds.     

Aminomethyl psoralens. Electrophilic substitution of hydroxymethylphthalimide on linear furocoumarins

A new synthetic route to aminomethylpsoralens, substituted on the furan-ring, has been developed by electrophilic substitution of N-hydroxymethylphthalimide and subsequent hydrazinolysis. Hydroxy and methoxy activating functions on the psoralens lead to multi-site substitution and the products of these phthalimido-methylations resist simple cleavage with hydrazine. The two-step introduction of a single CH₂NH₂ group is successful in psoralens containing only methyl substituents.     

Reactions of furocoumarins. II. Synthetic aminomethyl psoralens via chloromethylation or benzylic bromination

Several psoralen derivatives have been synthesized in order to evaluate their efficacy as photochemotherapeutic (PUVA) agents, including a variety of 4′-substituted-4,5′,8-trimethypsoralen compounds ( 1d-j ). Improved synthesis of the very potent photosensitizers 8-methylpsoralen ( 6a ) and 4,8-dimethylpsoralen ( 6b ) are described and 6a has been shown to undergo formylation in the 4′-position. Free radical bromination of 6a and 6b with NBS affords primarily 8-bromomethyl derivatives ( 8a and d ), which are readily converted into the 8-aminomethyl derivatives ( 8c and f ) by the Gabriel method. If the 4′-position is blocked, electrophilic substitution apparently occurs primarily in the 5′-position of the psoralen system. At least, chloromethylation of 4′-methylpsoralen ( 9 ) affords mainly 5′-chloromethyl derivatives ( 10a and d ), which also lead to aminomethylpsoralens ( 10c and f ).     

CIDNP.-Investigation of Photoinduced Polymerization

The photochemistry and some initiator characteristics of the polymerization initiators ω,ω-dimethoxy-ω-phenyl-acetophenone ( A ), ω,ω-diethoxy-acetophenone ( B ) and ω,ω-diisopropoxy-acetophenone ( C ) have been studied by ¹H- and ¹³C-chemically-induced nuclear polarization (CIDNP.) experiments. The primary reaction of initiator A is a Norrish-type I cleavage, while for B and C Norrish-type I and Norrish-type II cleavages are of comparable importance. Three different recombination products could be detected for initiator A which correspond to the three canonical resonance forms of the substituted benzyl radical. In a number of polymerization experiments the competition between reactions among initiator radicals and reactions of initiator radicals with the monomer acrylic acid methyl ester was studied at low concentrations of the monomer. These experiments give insight into the first steps of the polymerization process. The positive sign of the α-hydrogen hyperfine couplings of the dimethoxy-methyl- and the diisoproproxymethyl-radicals could be established, in agreement with the deviation of these radicals from planarity. A slow square-wave light-modulation technique has been employed in ¹³C-FT.-experiments to measure absolute CIDNP.-intensities.     

Photoinduced DNA cleavage by fullerene-lysine conjugate

A novel water-soluble [60] fullerene-substituted lysine derivative 3 has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR and FAB-MS. The synthetic procedure involved condensation of Boc-protected lysine with terephthaldehyde followed by 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction with C₆₀ in the presence of sarcosine and finally deprotection of the amino group using trifluoroacetic acid. The synthesized compound 3 exhibited high DNA cleavage efficiency upon visible light irradiation in the presence of NADH.     

Photoinduced gelation by stilbene oxalyl amide compounds

Oxalyl amide derivatives bearing 4-dodecyloxy-stilbene as a cis-trans photoisomerizing unit were synthesized. The trans derivative acted as a versatile gelator of various organic solvents, whereas the corresponding cis derivative showed a poor gelation ability or none at all. In diluted solution (c = 2.0 x10(-5) mol dm(-3), ethanol), the cis isomer was photochemically converted into the trans isomer within 4 min. Depending on the radiation wavelength, the trans isomer was stable or liable to photodecomposition. When exposed to irradiation, a concentrated solution of the cis isomer (c = 2.0 x 10(-2) mol dm(-3), ethanol) turned into a gel. The FT-Raman, FT-IR, and 1H NMR spectra demonstrated that the gelation process occurred because of a rapid cis --> trans photoisomerization followed by a self-assembly of the trans molecules. Apart from the formation of hydrogen bonding between the oxalyl amide parts of the molecules, confirmed by FT-IR spectroscopy, it was assumed that the pi-pi stacking between the trans-stilbene units of the molecule and a lipophilic interaction between long alkyl chains were the interactions responsible for gelation.     

Photoinduced water oxidation by polymeric iron cyanide complex

It was found that photoelectrochemical water oxidation takes place at a polynuclear iron-cyanide complex-coated electrode called Berlin Brown (BB; Fe₄^III[Fe^III(CN)₆]₃³ 3X). The electrode-coated BB showed electrocatalytic activity for water oxidation to produce O₂ not only in the dark but also under illumination to result in photoinduced water oxidation. The amount of the photoelectrochemically produced O₂ increased with the thickness of the BB film, indicating that the BB works as a bulk catalyst.     

Photoinduced charge transfer mediated by DNA-wrapped carbon nanotubes

We report our observation of solution photochemical reactions catalyzed by carbon nanotubes. Addition of sub-millimolar Ag+ ions into a solution of DNA-wrapped carbon nanotubes (DNA-CNT) leads to a strong charge-transfer band in the UV region of the optical absorption spectrum. Light irradiation of the Ag+/DNA-CNT mixture results in reduction of Ag+ to Ag nanoparticles and concomitant oxidation of water.     

Photoinduced hydrophilic and photocatalytic response of hydrothermally grown TiO2 nanostructured thin films

It is demonstrated that nanostructured titanium (IV) oxide (TiO₂) films can be deposited on glass substrates at 95 °C using hydrothermal growth, their properties being greatly affected by the substrate materials. Anatase TiO₂ films grown on ITO for deposition period of 50 h were observed to exhibit a very efficient, reversible light-induced transition to super-hydrophilicity, reaching a nearly zero contact angle. Enhanced photocatalytic activity (65%) was found for the rutile TiO₂ samples grown on microscope glass, possibly due to their higher roughness with respect to anatase grown on ITO. The effect of the substrate material used is discussed in terms of the TiO₂ phase and morphology control, for the best photoinduced hydrophilic and photocatalytic performance of the samples.     

Photoinduced dissolution of titanium dioxide by oxalic acid

The photoinduced dissolution of titanium dioxide is observed upon the UV irradiation of aqueous solutions of degassed suspensions of this semiconductor in the presence of oxalic acid. A mechanism is proposed involving the photoinduced and dark dissolution of titanium dioxide with the formation of titanium(III) and titanium(IV) oxalates, respectively.Translated from Teoreticheskaya i Éksperimental'naya Khimiya, Vol. 29, No. 6, pp. 545–547, November–December, 1994.     

Photoinduced alignment of nanocylinders by supramolecular cooperative motions

A linearly polarized laser beam was used to control nanocylinders self-assembled in an amphiphilic diblock liquid-crystalline copolymer consisting of flexible poly(ethylene oxide) as a hydrophilic block and poly(methacrylate) containing an azobenzene moiety in the side chain as a hydrophobic liquid-crystalline segment. The perfect array of poly(ethylene oxide) nanocylinders was achieved, aligned perpendicularly to the polarization direction of the actinic light by supramolecular cooperative motions between the ordered azobenzene and microphase separation. By the simple and convenient way of photocontrol, the macroscopic parallel patterning of nanocylinders can be easily obtained in an arbitrary area.     

Photoinduced oxygenation of tryptamines by aromatic amine N-oxides

Irradiation (1) (253-7 nm) of N_a,N_b-dimethyltryptaimne with pyridine N-oxide or benzo[c]cinnoline N-oxide in CH₂Cl₂ yielded 1,8-dimethyl-3a-hydroxy-1,2,3,3a,8-8a,- hexahydropyrrolo[2,3-b]indole (19), while with visible light N_b-(4-cyanobutadienyl)-N_a,N_b,- dimethyltryptamine (21) was obtained. This method was applied to trimethyltryptamine and the corresponding oxindole (34) and the N-formyl derivative (20) were obtained.     

Molecular Mechanism of Photosensitization XI. Membrane Damage and DNA Cleavage Photoinduced by Enoxacin

The photosensitizing activity of enoxacin, 1-ethyl-6-fluoro-1,4-dihydro-4-oxo-7-(1-piperazinyl)-1,8-naphthyridine-3-carboxilic acid (ENX), toward membranes and DNA has been studied, taking into account human erythrocyte photohemolysis, unilamellar liposome alterations and plasmid pBR322 DNA photocleavage. Hydroxyl radicals and an aromatic carbene generated from ENX photode-fluorination seem to be the active intermediates involved in the photosensitization process. The steady-state photolysis products do not participate in the process. The mechanism of photosensitization responsible for the membrane damage depends on the oxygen concentration and follows a different path with respect to that operative for DNA cleavage. Between oxygenated radicals, the hydroxyl seems the species mainly responsible for membrane damage, whereas DNA cleavage is mainly produced by the carbene intermediate. A molecular mechanism of the photosensitization induced by ENX is proposed.     

Oxidation of Tyrosine Photoinduced by Pterin in Aqueous Solution

Pterins, heterocyclic compounds widespread in biological systems, accumulate in the skin of patients suffering from vitiligo, a chronic depigmentation disorder. Pterins have been previously identified as good photosensitizers under UV‐A irradiation. In this work, we have investigated the ability of pterin (Ptr), the parent compound of oxidized pterins, to photosensitize the oxidation of tyrosine (Tyr) in aqueous solutions. Tyr is an important target in the study of the photodynamic effects of UV‐A radiation because it is oxidized by singlet oxygen (¹O₂) and plays a key role in polymerization and cross‐linking of proteins. Steady UV‐A irradiation of solutions containing Ptr and Tyr led to the consumption of Tyr and dissolved O₂, whereas the Ptr concentration remained unchanged. Concomitantly, hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) was produced. By combining different analytical techniques, we could establish that the mechanism of the photosensitized process involves an electron transfer from Tyr to the triplet excited state of Ptr. Mass spectrometry, chromatography and fluorescence were used to analyze the photoproducts. In particular, oxygenated and dimeric compounds were identified.     

Photoinduced cytotoxicity and thioadduct formation by a prodigiosin analogue

[reaction: see text] The prodigiosin alkaloid 1 and the synthetic analogue 2 show photoinduced cytotoxicity against HL-60 cancer cells. Photoirradiation of 1 and 2 causes photofading, photooxidation, and thioadduct formation. These results provide a model for the redox properties of prodigiosins that play a role in their biological activity and provide a new way to functionalize their pyrromethene entity with water-soluble thiol groups.