Synthesis and Photochromic Properties of Configurationally Varied Azobenzene Glycosides

Spatial orientation of carbohydrates is a meaningful parameter in carbohydrate recognition processes. To vary orientation of sugars with temporal and spatial resolution, photosensitive glycoconjugates with favorable photochromic properties appear to be opportune. Here, a series of azobenzene glycosides were synthesized, employing glycoside synthesis and Mills reaction, to allow “switching” of carbohydrate orientation by reversible E/Z isomerization of the azobenzene N=N double bond. Their photochromic properties were tested and effects of azobenzene substitution as well as the effect of anomeric configuration and the orientation of the sugars 2-hydroxy group were evaluated.     

假1,2-二苯乙烯型偶氮苯合成、表征及其光致异构性能

合成系列假1,2-二苯乙烯型偶氮苯,利用FT-IR、NMR、ESI-MS和元素分析等技术手段确定目标化合物结构,并通过UV-Vis光谱研究其光致变色性能,测定其溶液态光致顺反异构速率常数,同时考察其在聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯掺杂薄膜中抗疲劳性能,结果表明,目标化合物在乙酸乙酯中π-π^*能级低于n-π^*能级,且两个能级出现重叠,异构转变速率常数数量级10^-1~10⁰ s^-1,反→顺异构转变速率常数k_t受到偶极-偶极作用力和空间位阻效应影响,偶极-偶极作用力对单溴代物的k_t影响比二溴代物大,空间位阻效应对二溴代物的k_t影响比单溴代物大,顺→反异构转变速率常数k_c与k_t大小顺序相反,在聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯掺杂薄膜中有良好的抗疲劳性能。     

General Principles for the Design of Visible-Light-Responsive Photoswitches: Tetra-ortho-Chloro-Azobenzenes

Molecular photoswitches enable reversible external control of biological systems, nanomachines, and smart materials. Their development is driven by the need for low energy (green-red-NIR) light switching, to allow non-invasive operation with deep tissue penetration. The lack of clear design principles for the adaptation and optimization of such systems limits further applications. Here we provide a design rulebook for tetra-ortho-chloroazobenzenes, an emerging class of visible-light-responsive photochromes, by elucidating the role that substituents play in defining their key characteristics: absorption spectra, band overlap, photoswitching efficiencies, and half-lives of the unstable cis isomers. This is achieved through joint photochemical and theoretical analyses of a representative library of molecules featuring substituents of varying electronic nature. A set of guidelines is presented that enables tuning of properties to the desired application through informed photochrome engineering.     

Synthesis and photoswitching properties of bent-shaped liquid crystals containing azobenzene monomers

Three novel bent-shaped monomers, namely 1,3-phenylene bis-{4-[4-(n-allyloxyalkyloxy)phenylazo]benzoate} 5a–c, containing azobenzene as side arms, resorcinol as central units and terminal double bonds as polymerisable functional groups were synthesised and characterised. The mesophase behaviour was investigated by polarising optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction measurements and it was found that all three compounds display SmA_intercal mesophases. These bent-shaped molecules exhibit strong photoisomerisation behaviour in solutions in which trans to cis isomerisation takes about 50 seconds whereas the reverse process takes almost 31 hours.     

Synthesis and Surface‐Spectroscopic Characterization of Photoisomerizable glyco‐SAMs on Au(111)

Photoisomerizable glyco‐SAMs (self‐assembled monolayers), utilizing synthetic azobenzene glycoside derivatives were fabricated. The ultimate goal of this project is to assay the influence of the 3D arrangement of sugar ligands on cell adhesion, and eventually make cell adhesion photoswitchable. However, it is a prerequisite for any biological study on the spatial conditions of carbohydrate recognition, that photoisomerization of the surface molecules can be verified. Here, we employed IRRAS and XPS to spectroscopically characterize glyco‐SAMs. In particular and unprecedented to date, we prove reversible E→Z→E isomerization of azobenzene glycoside‐terminated SAMs.     

Azobenzene: a Visible-Light Chemical Actinometer for the Characterization of Fluidic Photosystems

(E)-Azobenzene is introduced as a suitable chemical actinometer in the visible spectral range (440–540 nm) for photon flux determination of fluidic microphotoreactors or for assessing efficiency of visible light photo-induced reactions, its evaluation is straightforward without tedious analytics. Photoisomerization quantum yields (Φ_E→_Z) of (E)-azobenzene were accurately determined upon irradiation at several wavelengths and in different solvents based on well-known diarylethene.     

Aza-Oxa-Triazole Based Macrocycles with Tunable Properties: Design,Synthesis, and Bioactivity

A modular platform for the synthesis of tunable aza-oxa-based macrocycles was established. Modulations in the backbone and the side-chain functional groups have been rendered to achieve the tunable property. These aza-oxa-based macrocycles can also differ in the number of heteroatoms in the backbone and the ring size of the macrocycles. For the proof of concept, a library of macrocycles was synthesized with various hanging functional groups, different combinations of heteroatoms, and ring sizes in the range of 17–27 atoms and was characterized by NMR and mass spectrometry. In light of the importance of the copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction and the significance of triazole groups for various applications, we employed the click-reaction-based macrocyclization. The competence of the synthesized macrocycles in various biomedical applications was proven by studying the interactions with the serum albumin proteins; bovine serum albumin and human serum albumin. It was observed that some candidates, based on their hanging functional groups and specific backbone atoms, could interact well with the protein, thus improving the bioactive properties. On the whole, this work is a proof-of-concept to explore the backbone- and side-chain-tunable macrocycle for different properties and applications.     

Spiropyran Photoswitches in the Context of DNA: Synthesis and Photochromic Properties

A new design is presented for the incorporation of spiropyran photoswitches into nucleic acids by oligonucleotide solid phase synthesis. This design enables interaction of the 6‐nitrospirobenzopyran (NitroBIPS) photoswitch with the adjacent nucleobases and leaves the photochemical properties of NitroBIPS intact. UV/Vis spectroscopy and HPLC revealed that NitroBIPS incorporated into DNA consists of up to 40 % merocyanine in its thermal equilibrium and undergoes reversible switching between the photoisomeric spiropyran (SP) and merocyanin (MC) state by alternating excitation using visible light or heat for at least fifteen switching cycles. Exchanging the chromene part of NitroBIPS on the DNA level gives access to differently substituted spiropyran derivatives allowing the screening for spiropyrans with suitable properties in a straightforward manner. Thus, by incorporating the highly hydrolysis‐stable pyrido‐spiropyran derivative PyBIPS pure light‐triggered reversible switching of a spiropyran in DNA has been realized for the first time. Therefore, this design represents a new useful platform for investigating the photochromic behavior of different spiropyran photoswitches in a nucleic acid environment and for using spiropyrans to induce light‐ or heat‐triggered changes in conformations or in fluorescence quenching properties of oligonucleotides.     

Photoswitchable Fluorescent Nanoparticles: Preparation,Properties and Applications

This minireview highlights recent advances of research dedicated to photoswitchable fluorescent nanoparticles and their applications. Recently, several strategies have been developed to synthesize nanoparticles with optically switchable emission properties: either fluorescence on/off or dual‐alternating‐color fluorescence photoswitching. The underlying mechanisms of fluorescence photoswitching enable many different types of photoswitchable fluorescent nanoparticles to change fluorescence colors, thus validating the basis of the initial photoswitching design. Among all possible applications, the usage of photoswitchable fluorescent nanoparticles to empower super‐resolution fluorescence imaging and to label biological targets was subsequently reviewed. Finally, we summarize the important areas regarding future research and development on photoswitchable fluorescent nanoparticles.     

新型偶氮苯金属配合物的合成与性能

合成了新型偶氮苯金属配合物。分别采用光谱分析、热分析及X射线衍射测试技术对产物进行了表征和测试。结果表明,连接偶氮苯和金属配合物之间碳链的长度对该化合物的相转变和荧光特性具有特殊的影响。该系列化合物在紫外光和热作用下具有99%以上的偶氮苯顺-反异构化反应效率;具有290和560 nm这2个波段的荧光发射光谱。由其中1个金属配合物分散在聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯网络而形成的介质可作为全息信息存储材料而实现全息图像的写入和读出。     

Reprocessible Epoxy Networks with Tunable Physical Properties: Synthesis,Stress Relaxation and Recyclability

In order to extend the application of epoxy vitrimer,1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid (CHDA) was used as a co-curing agent and structure modifier for sebacic acid (SA) cured diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) epoxy vitrimer to tailor the mechanical properties of epoxy vitrimers with 1,5,7-triazabicylo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene (TBD) as a transesterification catalyst.The glass transition temperature (Tg) ofvitrimer increased gradually with the increase in CHDA content.Vitrimers behaved from elastomer to tough and hard plastics were successfully achieved by varying the feed ratio of CHDA to SA.Both the Young's modulus and storage modulus increased apparently with the increase in CHDA content.Stress relaxation measurement indicated that more prominent stress relaxation occurred at elevated temperatures and the stress relaxation decreased with the increase of CHDA content due to the reduced mobility of the vitrimer backbone.The vitrimers showed excellent recyclability as evidenced by the unchanged gel fraction and mechanical properties after compression molded for several times.With tunable mechanical properties,the epoxy vitrimers may find extensive potential applications.     

Synthesis and Properties of a New Thermo-sensitive Random Polyurethane with Tunable LCSTs

In this paper, a new class of thermo-sensitive random polyurethanes (PGLDs) have been prepared by polymerization of L-lysineethyl ester diisocyanate with five homologous derivatives of ethylene glycols. The structure and properties of polyurethanes were characterized by various techniques. The molecular weight M_n and structure of polyurethanes are found to be particularly significant factors to their thermo-sensitivity. Four polyurethanes except poly(L-lysine ethyl ester diisocyanate-co-ethylene glycol) show a reversible phase transition at the lower critical solution temperature, which can be easily tuned in the range of 4–35°C by combination of the monomers. Unexpectedly, the increasing number of –CH₂CH₂O–units in the main-chain of polyurethanes apparently acts as the hydrophobicity in the solution. The catalyst-free-synthesized polyurethanes with M_n of about (1–2) × 10⁴ g/mol responses to the external temperature. Stannous octoate-catalysted polyurethanes with M_n of (3–6) × 10⁴ g/mol exhibit no thermo-sensitivity because of their strong intra/intermolecular interactions. In addition, the viability of HeLa cells in 0.01–100 μg/mL solution reached to 80% after 24 and 48 h of incubation, indicating no cytotoxicity for polyurethanes.     

介孔Ce-MCM-48的合成及其可见光催化性能研究

分别利用十六烷基三甲基溴化铵(CTAB)、正硅酸乙酯(TEOS)为模板剂和硅源,合成了高度有序的MCM-48材料。通过浸渍法制备了Ce含量不同的MCM-48(Ce-MCM-48s)材料。采用TG-DTA、小角XRD、N2吸-脱附、FT-IR、TEM、XPS和UV-vis等对Ce-MCM-48s进行了表征。XRD、N2吸-脱附和TEM证明Ce-MCM-48s具有与MCM-48相似的三维螺旋立体结构;FT-IR和XPS表明MCM-48孔道及其表面已被Ce氧化物所覆盖。可见光催化降解罗丹明B的实验证明,10%Ce-MCM-48的催化降解效率好于纯CeO2,商用TiO2(P125),5%Ce-MCM-48和15%Ce-MCM-48的。     

Sign Inversion in Photopharmacology: Incorporation of Cyclic Azobenzenes in Photoswitchable Potassium Channel Blockers and Openers

Photopharmacology relies on ligands that change their pharmacodynamics upon photoisomerization. Many of these ligands are azobenzenes that are thermodynamically more stable in their elongated trans‐configuration. Often, they are biologically active in this form and lose activity upon irradiation and photoisomerization to their cis‐isomer. Recently, cyclic azobenzenes, so‐called diazocines, have emerged, which are thermodynamically more stable in their bent cis‐form. Incorporation of these switches into a variety of photopharmaceuticals could convert dark‐active ligands into dark‐inactive ligands, which is preferred in most biological applications. This “pharmacological sign‐inversion” is demonstrated for a photochromic blocker of voltage‐gated potassium channels, termed CAL, and a photochromic opener of G protein‐coupled inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK) channels, termed CLOGO.     

多重栾晶钯颗粒的可见光简易合成及对乙醇的电催化氧化

以氯化钯(PdCl₂)为金属前驱体, 乙醇为还原剂, 聚乙烯吡咯烷酮(PVP)为稳定剂和导向剂, 利用普通市售节能灯产生的光热作用, 辅助制备多重栾晶钯纳米颗粒。用HRTEM、FFT、PXRD、XPS、UV-Vis和FT-IR等技术对产品的形貌、晶体结构、光学性质和稳定性进行了表征, 并通过循环伏安法研究了多重栾晶Pd修饰玻碳电极对乙醇的电催化氧化活性。结果表明, 多重栾晶钯结构的形成依赖于光和热的协同作用。该材料的表面等离子共振吸收峰在可见光区域, 对乙醇有较好的电催化活性和抗中毒能力。     

多重栾晶钯颗粒的可见光简易合成及对乙醇的电催化氧化

以氯化钯(PdCl₂)为金属前驱体,乙醇为还原剂,聚乙烯吡咯烷酮(PVP)为稳定剂和导向剂,利用普通市售节能灯产生的光热作用,辅助制备多重栾晶钯纳米颗粒.用HRTEM、FFT、PXRD、XPS、UV-Vis和FT-IR等技术对产品的形貌、晶体结构、光学性质和稳定性进行了表征,并通过循环伏安法研究了多重栾晶Pd修饰玻碳电极对乙醇的电催化氧化活性.结果表明,多重栾晶钯结构的形成依赖于光和热的协同作用.该材料的表面等离子共振吸收峰在可见光区域,对乙醇有较好的电催化活性和抗中毒能力.     

掺镁钛酸钡纳米棒的水热合成和光催化性能

用水热法制备掺镁钛酸钡(Ba1-xMgxTiO3(x=0,0.10,0.20,0.30,0.40),BMT)纳米粉体。运用X射线衍射仪(XRD)、场发射扫描电子显微镜(FESEM)、透射电子显微镜(TEM)、紫外可见漫反射光谱技术(DRS)等手段对样品进行了表征,并在可见光照射下于溶液中考察了其光催化降解甲基橙反应活性。结果表明,通过控制氢氧根浓度可以得到不同形貌的纳米粉体。基于不同条件下制备的样品的微结构分析,提出了这些不同形貌的形成机制。制备出的BMT材料的带隙能约为2.61 eV。光催化反应结果表明BMT的光催化活性比掺氮TiO2高得多。OH-浓度为8 mol·L-1时制备的BMT纳米棒光催化效率最高,经可见光照射360 min,浓度为0.01 mmol·L-1甲基橙溶液的降解率可达到93.0%,且循环使用4次后,其光催化活性并没有明显降低,表明BMT是一种稳定有效的可见光催化剂.     

Synthesis,properties and mechanism of photodegradation of core–shell structured upconversion luminescent NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+@BiOCl

Microspherical bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) can only utilize ultraviolet (UV) light to promote photocatalytic reactions. To overcome this limitation, a uniform and thin BiOCl nanosheet was synthesized with a particle size of about 200 nm. As results of UV–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy showed, the band gap of this nanostructure was reduced to 2.78 eV, indicating that the BiOCl nanosheet could absorb and utilize visible light. Furthermore, the upconversion material NaYF₄ doped with rare earth ions Yb³⁺ and Er³⁺ emitted visible light at 410 nm following excitation with near‐infrared (NIR) light (980 nm), which could be utilized by BiOCl to produce a photocatalytic reaction. To produce a high‐efficiency photocatalyst (NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺@BiOCl), BiOCl‐loaded NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺ was successfully synthesized via a simple two‐step hydrothermal method. The as‐synthesized material was confirmed using X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy as well as other characterizations. The removal ratio of methylene blue by NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺@BiOCl was much higher than that of BiOCl alone. Recycling experiments verified the stability of NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺@BiOCl, which demonstrated excellent adsorption, strong visible‐light absorption and high electron–hole separation efficiency. Such properties are expected to be useful in practical applications, and a further understanding of the NIR‐light‐responsive photocatalytic mechanism of this new catalytic material would be conducive to improving its structural design and function.     

Straightforward Synthesis,Electrochemical Properties,and Gel Formation of Thiacalix[n]thiophenes

A facile synthetic approach toward thiacalix[n]thiophene homologues (n=4–6) is presented herein. Pd‐catalyzed coupling of 2,5‐dibromothiophene derivatives with stannyl sulfide gave various thiacalix[n]thiophenes in good yields. The optical and electrochemical properties of the produced cavitands were investigated. Furthermore, gelation was observed in some solvents.