Ultrafast twisting motions and intramolecular charge-transfer reaction in a cyanine dye trapped in molecular nanocavities

Self-assembled multifunctional core-shell highly porous metal-organic framework nanoparticles

Core-shell nanoparticles (NPs) are attracting increasing interest in nanomedicine as they exhibit unique properties arising from the combined assets of core and shell materials. Porous nanoscale metal-organic frameworks (nanoMOFs) are able to incorporate with high payloads a large variety of drugs. Like other types of NPs, nanoMOFs need to be functionalized with engineered coatings to ensure colloidal stability, control in vivo fate and drug release. To do so, a novel biodegradable cyclodextrin (CD)-based shell was designed in this study. Water soluble γ-CD-citrate oligomers grafted or not with fluorophores were successfully synthesized using citric acid as crosslinker and efficiently anchored onto the surface of porous nanoMOFs. As compared to monomeric CDs, the oligomeric CD coatings could offer higher interaction possibilities with the cores and better possibilities to graft functional moieties such as fluorescent molecules. The amounts of γ-CD-citrate oligomers onto the nanoMOFs were as high as 53 ± 8 wt%. The yield reached up to 86% in the optimized system. These core-shell nanocomposites were stable upon storage, in contrast to the naked nanoMOFs. In addition, the presence of the coating prevented the doxorubicin (DOX)-loaded nanoMOFs from aggregation. Moreover, due to the presence of fluorophores conjugated to the shell, fluorescence-lifetime microscopy enabled deciphering the coating mechanism. DOX loadings reached 48 ± 10 wt% after 24 h incubation with the drug solution. After coating for additional 24 h, DOX loadings reached 65 ± 8 wt%.

Fluorescent pseudorotaxanes of a quinodicarbocyanine dye with gamma cyclodextrin

Spectrophotometric titration of buffered solutions of gamma cyclodextrin (γCD) and 1,1'-diethyl,2,2'-dicarbocyanine (DDI) demonstrates extension of the known 1:2 host:guest complex to form a previously unreported 2:2 complex near the γCD solubility limit. Though DDI is predominantly hosted as a non-fluorescent H-aggregate, both complexes exist in respective equilibria with two secondary complexes hosting unaggregated DDI as 1:1 and 2:1 complexes. The 2:1 complex exhibits significant fluorescence emission, with a quantum yield six times that of DDI in organic solvents, but ten times lower than that of an analogous indodicarbocyanine. Fragment Molecular Orbital calculations suggest that the 2:1 complex has the tail-to-tail conformation, and that solvent access to the dye strongly favors photoisomerization. In the host-guest complex, γCD limits solvent access to the dye and hinders rotation of the quinolyl terminal groups, but nevertheless pairwise rotation of methine carbons within the γCD cavity likely remains as a significant nonradiative relaxation pathway for the excited state.

Guest:host interactions of lidocaine and prilocaine with natural cyclodextrins: spectral and molecular modeling studies

Inclusion complex formation of two local anesthetics drugs (lidocaine (LC) and prilocaine (PC)) with α- and β-cyclodextrins (CDs) in aqueous solution were studied by absorption, fluorescence, time-resolved fluorescence and molecular modeling methods. The formation of inclusion complexes was confirmed by 1H NMR, FTIR, differential scanning calorimetry, SEM, TEM and X-ray diffractometry. Both drugs formed 1:1 inclusion complex and exhibit biexponential decay in water whereas triexponential decay in the CD solution. Nanosized self-aggregated particles of drug: CD complexes were found by TEM. Both experimental and theoretical studies revealed that the phenyl ring with the amide group of the drug is encapsulated in the hydrophobic CD nanocavity. Investigations of energetic and thermodynamic properties confirmed the stability of the inclusion complexes. van der Waals interactions are mainly responsible for enthalpy driven complex formation of LC and PC with CDs.

Calix[4]arene sulfonate as a template for forming fluorescent thiazole orange H-aggregates

The unexpected interaction between thiazole orange (TO) and calix[4]arene sulfonate is reported herein. H-Aggregates of TO switching on their fluorescence in solution are observed. Surprisingly, fluorescence enhancement is not linked to host-guest inclusion, but rather to calix[4]arene sulfonate serving as a template for several TO molecules.

Free Volume Nanocavities in PMMA Revealed by Rotational Dephasing of Paraterphenyl in a Transient Grating Experiment

The excited state decay behaviour of p-terphenyl in cyclohexane solution and in a rigid poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) film is reported as measured in a ps polarization dependent transient grating experiment. In both cases, the diffracted intensity shows a biexponential decay. The slower component is attributed to excited state lifetime. In the liquid solution, the faster decay component is described by the hydrodynamical Stokes–Einstein–Debye theory for rotational reorientation under slip boundary conditions. In the rigid matrix it is interpreted in terms of a free volume effect.

Spectral properties and inclusion of a hetero-chalcone analogue in organized media of micellar solutions and beta-cyclodextrin

The absorption and fluorescence emission spectral properties of 3-(4'-dimethylaminophenyl)-1-(2-thienyl)prop-2-en-1-one, abbreviated as DMATP, have been investigated in organized media of aqueous micellar and beta-cyclodextrin (CD) solutions. While the absorption spectra are less sensitive to the nature of the added surfactant or CD, the characteristics of the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) fluorescence are highly sensitive to the properties of the medium. The ICT maximum is strongly blue-shifted with a great enhancement in the fluorescence quantum yield on adding micellar or CD solutions. This indicates the solubilization of DMATP in the micellar core and formation of an inclusion complex with beta-CD. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) as well as the polarity of the micellar core of SDS, CTAB and TX-100 have been determined. The CMC values are in good agreement with the reported values while the polarity is lower indicating that DMATP molecules are incorporated in the micellar core not at the micellar interface. The inclusion constants of binding of DMATP in micellar or CD have been also determined. The thermodynamic parameters of formation of DMATP:CD inclusion complex have been calculated from the temperature dependence of the fluorescence spectra of the formed complex. The negative enthalpy and free energy of formation indicate that the inclusion process is energetically favorable. The highly negative value of formation entropy (DeltaS = -162.3 J mol(-1) K(-1)) reflects the high restrictions imposed on the movement of both the host and included guest molecules which is consistent with the increase of the fluorescence yield and blue shift of the fluorescence maximum.

Fast Relaxation Dynamics of the Cardiotonic Drug Milrinone in Water Solutions

The fast relaxation dynamics of 1,6-dihydro-2-methyl-6-oxo-3,4'-bipyridine-5-carbonitrile (milrinone, MIR), a cardiotonic drug, has been characterized in water solutions at different pH. In acidic media, a blue emission reflects a charge-transfer state in the cation (C) leading to a more stabilized structure with an emission lifetime of 90 ps. The emission lifetimes of the keto (K) and anion (A) structures are approximately 65 and 310 ps, respectively. Reasons for efficient nonradiative channels are discussed in terms of hydrogen-bonding interactions, intramolecular charge transfer (ICT), and twisting motion. A blue nanosecond-emission observed in almost all the studied pH range is suggested to be due to relaxed K due to an ICT reaction. B3LYP (6-31+G**) calculations showed that, in a water cavity, K is more stable than the enol form by 7 kcal/mol, and the ICT may take place within the pyridone moiety. At the physiological pH, the inotropic K structure is the dominant species (approximately 100%).