6-Arylcoumarin as a Scaffold of Photofunctional Molecules with OFF-ON-OFF Type Regulation

J Org Chem. 2021 Feb 5;86(3):2264-2270. doi: 10.1021/acs.joc.0c02419. Epub 2020 Dec 27.

Abstract

Coumarin has been utilized as a core structure of photofunctional molecules, such as fluorescent sensors and photoremovable protecting groups. Here, we show that the 6-arylcoumarin moiety can provide OFF-ON-OFF type regulatory functionality for such compounds. To illustrate its utility, we synthesized a coumarin derivative bearing two phenolic hydroxy groups at 7-position and on 6-aryl group as a fluorescent sensor showing an OFF-ON-OFF change in fluorescence intensity in response to an increase in pH from a strongly acidic condition. Further, we show that the efficiency of photoreaction of other derivatives with the same hydroxyl groups is switched from "OFF" at pH 3 and 6 to "ON" at pH 9 and then to OFF at pH 12, enabling their application as switchable photoremovable protective groups. These features arise from sequential deprotonation of two hydroxyl groups: the monoanionic form is responsible for the photoinduced fluorescence and photoreaction.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Fluorescence
  • Fluorescent Dyes*

Substances

  • Fluorescent Dyes