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In the present study, photophysical properties of [N]phenylenes were studied by means of stationary and time-resolved absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy (in THF at room temperature). For biphenylene (1) and linear [3]phenylene (2a), internal conversion (IC) with quantum yields ΦIC > 0.99 is by far the dominant mechanism of S1 state deactivation. Angular [3]phenylene (3a), the zig-zag [4]- and [5]phenylenes (3b), (3c), and the triangular [4]phenylene (4) show fluorescence emission with fluorescence quantum yieds and lifetimes between ΦF = 0.07 for (3a) and 0.21 for (3c) and τF = 20 ns for (3a) and 81 ns for (4). Also, compounds (3) and (4) exhibit triplet formation upon photoexcitation with quantum yields as high as ΦISC = 0.45 for (3c). The strong differences in the fluorescence properties and in the triplet fromation efficiencies between (1) and (2a) on one hand and (3) and (4) on the other are related to the remarkable variation of the internal conversion (IC) rate constants kIC. A tentative classification of (1) and (2a) as “fast IC compounds”, with kIC > 109 s-1, and of (3) and (4) as “slow IC compounds”, with kIC ≈ 107 s-1, is suggested. This classification cannot simply be related to Hückel’s rule-type concepts of aromaticity, because the group of “fast IC compounds” consists of “antiaromatic” (1) and “aromatic” (2a), and the group of “slow IC compounds” consists of “antiaromatic” (3b), (4) and “aromatic” (3a), (3c). The IC in the [N]phenylenes is discussed within the framework of the so-called energy gap law established for non-radiative processes in benzenoid hydrocarbons.
First studies of electron transfer in [N]phenylenes were performed in bimolecular quenching reactions of angular [3]- and triangular [4]phenylene with various electron acceptors. The relation between the quenching rate constants kq and the free energy change of the electron transfer (ΔG0CS ) could be described by the Rehm-Weller equation. From the experimental results, a reorganization energy λ of 0.7 eV was derived. Intramolecular electron transfer reactions were studied in an [N]phenylene bichomophore and a corresponding reference compound. Fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield of the bichromophor display a characteristic dependence on the solvent polarity, whereas the corresponding values of the reference compound remain constant. From the results, a nearly isoenergonic ΔG0CS can be determined. As the triplet quantum yield is nearly independent of the polarity, charge recombination leads to the population of the triplet state.
2,11-Dialkylated 1,12-diazaperylenes (alkyl = Me, Et, iPr) dmedap, detdap and dipdap have been synthesized by reductive cyclization of 3,3-dialkylated 1,1-biisoquinolines 3a-c, resulting in the first copper(I) complexes of a large- surface ligand. The new copper(I) complexes show low-energy MLCT absorptions unprecedented for bis(-diimin)copper(I) complexes. The solid structures of the complexes[Cu(dipdap)2]BF4·CH2Cl2·1.5H2O, [Cu(dipdap)2]OTf·CH2Cl2, [Cu(dipdap)2]I·C2H4Cl2·THF·2H2O, [Cu(dmedap)2]OTf and [Cu(dipdap)2]AQSO3·H2O (AQSO3 = sodium 9,10-dihydro-9,10-dioxo-2- anthracenesulfonate) are reported. In [Cu(dipdap)2]BF4·CH2Cl2·1.5H2O, each copper(I) complex cation interacts with two others by - stacking interactions forming a novel supramolecular column structural motif running along the crystallographic c axis. In the crystalline compound [Cu(dipdap)2]AQSO3·H2O, aggregation between two complex cations and two additional anions by - stacking interactions is observed, leading to a tetrameric assembly. Furthermore, the three complex compounds [Cu(L)2]BF4 (L = dmedap, detdap, dipdap) were tested for sensory applications in aqueous buffer solutions in electrochemical studies of the complex immobilized on glassy carbon electrodes.
Homoleptic Ni-II and Fe-II complexes of the "large-surface" phenanthroline-type ligand 1,12-diazaperylene (dap), [Ni(dap)(3)](BF4)(2) (1) and [Fe(dap)(3)](PF6)(2) (2), respectively, were synthesized. In the crystal structure the complex cation [M(dap)(3)](2+) (M = Ni, Fe) exhibits C-3 symmetry and interacts with three other cations by pi-pi stacking. It forms a new metalla-supramolecular assembly with a honeycomb structure containing nanochannels running parallel to the crystallographic c axis. Aggregation by pi-pi stacking between metal complexes of "large-surface" ligands should give new perspectives for inorganic supramolecular chemistry.
Cyanine dyes have become widely used fluorescence labels in clinical and biological chemistry. In particular, cyanine dyes with excitation wavelengths lambda(ex) > 600 nm are often used in biological applications. However, aggregation behavior and matrix effects on cyanine fluorescence are not fully understood yet and interfere with the data interpretation. In this study, we analyzed the spectroscopic characteristics of a model system consisting of the biotinylated cyanine dyes DY-635 and DY-647 and their streptavidin conjugates. On the basis of the spectroscopic data, the interaction processes between cyanine dye molecules and proteins are discussed. Binding to streptavidin had a significant influence on both fluorescence and anisotropy decays of the cyanine dyes investigated. In particular, the fluorescence anisotropy was significantly altered, making it a promising detection parameter for bioanalytical applications in connection with the cyanine dyes used in the present study. In order to evaluate the time-resolved anisotropy, the introduction of a sophisticated kinetic model was required to describe the contributions from different fluorescing species properly. The rotational motion of streptavidin-bound dyes was analyzed using the associated anisotropy model, which allowed discrimination between contributions from different microenvironments. The anisotropy decay times increased by a factor of up to 20 due to protein binding.
Determination of micelle diffusion coefficients with fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS)
(2009)
We have investigated the influence of dimensionality on the excitation-transfer dynamics in a conjugated polymer blend. Using time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy, we have measured the transfer transients for both a three-dimensional blend film and for quasi-two-dimensional monolayers formed through intercalation of the polymer blend between the crystal planes of an inorganic SnS2 matrix. We compare the experimental data with a simple, dimensionality- dependent model based on electronic coupling between electronic transition moments taken to be point dipoles. Within this approximation, the energy-transfer dynamics is found to adopt a three-dimensional character in the solid film and a two-dimensional nature in the monolayers present in the SnS2-polymer nanocomposite.
Two-photon fluorescence lifetime imaging of intracellular chloride in cockroach salivary glands
(2009)
In humans, the L-cysteine desulfurase NFS1 plays a crucial role in the mitochondrial iron-sulfur cluster biosynthesis and in the thiomodification of mitochondrial and cytosolic tRNAs. We have previously demonstrated that purified NFS1 is able to transfer sulfur to the C-terminal domain of MOCS3, a cytosolic protein involved in molybdenum cofactor biosynthesis and tRNA thiolation. However, no direct evidence existed so far for the interaction of NFS1 and MOCS3 in the cytosol of human cells. Here, we present direct data to show the interaction of NFS1 and MOCS3 in the cytosol of human cells using Forster resonance energy transfer and a split-EGFP system. The colocalization of NFS1 and MOCS3 in the cytosol was confirmed by immunodetection of fractionated cells and localization studies using confocal fluorescence microscopy. Purified NFS1 was used to reconstitute the lacking molybdoenzyme activity of the Neurospora crassa nit-1 mutant, giving additional evidence that NFS1 is the sulfur donor for Moco biosynthesis in eukaryotes in general.
First studies of electron transfer in [N]phenylenes were performed in bimolecular quenching reactions of angular [3]- and triangular [4]phenylene with various electron acceptors. The relation between the quenching rate constants k(q) and the free energy change of the electron transfer (Delta G(CS)(0)) could be described by the Rehm- Weller equation. From the experimental results, a reorganization energy lambda of 0.7 eV was derived. Intramolecular electron transfer reactions were studied in an [N]phenylene bichomophore and a corresponding reference compound. Fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield of the bichromophor display a characteristic dependence on the solvent polarity, whereas the corresponding values of the reference compound remain constant. From the results, a nearly isoenergonic charge separation process can be determined. As the triplet quantum yield is nearly independent of the polarity, charge recombination leads to the population of the triplet state.
Efficient triplet exciton emission has allowed improved operation of organic light-emitting diodes (LEDs). To enhance the device performance, it is necessary to understand what governs the motion of triplet excitons through the organic semiconductor. Here, we have investigated triplet diffusion using a model compound that has weak energetic disorder. The Dexter-type triplet energy transfer is found to be thermally activated down to a transition temperature T- T, below which the transfer rate is only weakly temperature dependent. We show that above the transition temperature, Dexter energy transfer can be described within the framework of Marcus theory. We suggest that below T-T, the nature of the transfer changes from phonon-assisted hopping to quantum-mechanical tunneling. The lower electron-phonon coupling and higher electronic coupling in the polymer compared to the monomer results in an enhanced triplet diffusion rate.
Lahn M, Dosche C, Hille C. Two-photon microscopy and fluorescence lifetime imaging reveal stimulus-induced intracellular Na+ and Cl- changes in cockroach salivary acinar cells. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 300: C1323-C1336, 2011. First published February 23, 2011; doi: 10.1152/ajpcell.00320.2010.-The intracellular ion homeostasis in cockroach salivary acinar cells during salivation is not satisfactorily understood. This is mainly due to technical problems regarding strong tissue autofluorescence and ineffective ion concentration quantification. For minimizing these problems, we describe the successful application of two-photon (2P) microscopy partly in combination with fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) to record intracellular Na+ and Cl- concentrations ([Na+](i), [Cl-](i)) in cockroach salivary acinar cells. Quantitative 2P-FLIM Cl- measurements with the dye N-(ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-6-methoxy-quinolinium bromide indicate that the resting [Cl-](i) is 1.6 times above the Cl- electrochemical equilibrium but is not influenced by pharmacological inhibition of the Na+-K+-2Cl(-) cotransporter (NKCC) and anion exchanger using bumetanide and 4,4'-diisothiocyanatodihydrostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid disodium salt. In contrast, rapid Cl- reuptake after extracellular Cl- removal is almost totally NKCC mediated both in the absence and presence of dopamine. However, in physiological saline [Cl-](i) does not change during dopamine stimulation although dopamine stimulates fluid secretion in these glands. On the other hand, dopamine causes a decrease in the sodium-binding benzofuran isophthalate tetra-ammonium salt (SBFI) fluorescence and an increase in the Sodium Green fluorescence after 2P excitation. This opposite behavior of both dyes suggests a dopamine-induced [Na+](i) rise in the acinar cells, which is supported by the determined 2P-action cross sections of SBFI. The [Na+](i) rise is Cl- dependent and inhibited by bumetanide. The Ca2+-ionophore ionomycin also causes a bumetanide-sensitive [Na+](i) rise. We propose that a Ca2+-mediated NKCC activity in acinar peripheral cells attributable to dopamine stimulation serves for basolateral Na+ uptake during saliva secretion and that the concomitantly transported Cl- is recycled back to the bath.
We studied two pathways that involve the transfer of persulfide sulfur in humans, molybdenum cofactor biosynthesis and tRNA thiolation. Investigations using human cells showed that the two-domain protein MOCS3 is shared between both pathways. MOCS3 has an N-terminal adenylation domain and a C-terminal rhodanese-like domain. We showed that MOCS3 activates both MOCS2A and URM1 by adenylation and a subsequent sulfur transfer step for the formation of the thiocarboxylate group at the C terminus of each protein. MOCS2A and URM1 are beta-grasp fold proteins that contain a highly conserved C-terminal double glycine motif. The role of the terminal glycine of MOCS2A and URM1 was examined for the interaction and the cellular localization with MOCS3. Deletion of the C-terminal glycine of either MOCS2A or URM1 resulted in a loss of interaction with MOCS3. Enhanced cyan fluorescent protein and enhanced yellow fluorescent protein fusions of the proteins were constructed, and the fluorescence resonance energy transfer efficiency was determined by the decrease in the donor lifetime. The cellular localization results showed that extension of the C terminus with an additional glycine of MOCS2A and URM1 altered the localization of MOCS3 from the cytosol to the nucleus.
In response to stress small organic compounds termed osmolytes are ubiquitously accumulated in all cell types to regulate the intracellular solvent quality and to counteract the deleterious effect on the stability and function of cellular proteins. Given the evidence that destabilization of the native state of a protein either by mutation or by environmental changes triggers the aggregation in the neurodegenerative pathologies, the modulation of the intracellular solute composition with osmolytes is an attractive strategy to stabilize an aggregating protein. Here we report the effect of three natural osmolytes on the in vivo and in vitro aggregation landscape of huntingtin exon 1 implicated in the Huntington's disease. Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) and proline redirect amyloid fibrillogenesis of the pathological huntingtin exon 1 to nonamyloidogenic amorphous assemblies via two dissimilar molecular mechanisms. TMAO causes a rapid formation of bulky amorphous aggregates with minimally exposed surface area, whereas proline solubilizes the monomer and suppresses the accumulation of early transient aggregates. Conversely, glycine betaine enhances fibrillization in a fashion reminiscent of the genesis of functional amyloids. Strikingly, none of the natural osmolytes can completely abrogate the aggregate formation; however, they redirect the amyloidogenesis into alternative, nontoxic aggregate species. Our study reveals new insights into the complex interactions of osmoprotectants with polyQaggregates.
Active transport of NaCl across thick ascending limb (TAL) epithelium is accomplished by Na+, K+,2Cl(-) cotransporter (NKCC2). The activity of NKCC2 is determined by vasopressin (AVP) or intracellular chloride concentration and includes its amino-terminal phosphorylation. Co-expressed Tamm-Horsfall protein (THP) has been proposed to interact with NKCC2. We hypothesized that THP modulates NKCC2 activity in TAL. THP-deficient mice (THP-/-) showed an increased abundance of intracellular NKCC2 located in subapical vesicles (+47% compared with wild type (WT) mice), whereas base-line phosphorylation of NKCC2 was significantly decreased (-49% compared with WT mice), suggesting reduced activity of the transporter in the absence of THP. Cultured TAL cells with low endogenous THP levels and low base-line phosphorylation of NKCC2 displayed sharp increases in NKCC2 phosphorylation (+38%) along with a significant change of intracellular chloride concentration upon transfection with THP. In NKCC2-expressing frog oocytes, co-injection with THP cRNA significantly enhanced the activation of NKCC2 under low chloride hypotonic stress (+112% versus +235%). Short term (30 min) stimulation of the vasopressin V2 receptor pathway by V2 receptor agonist (deamino-cis-D-Arg vasopressin) resulted in enhanced NKCC2 phosphorylation in WT mice and cultured TAL cells transfected with THP, whereas in the absence of THP, NKCC2 phosphorylation upon deamino-cis-D-Arg vasopressin was blunted in both systems. Attenuated effects of furosemide along with functional and structural adaptation of the distal convoluted tubule in THP-/- mice supported the notion that NaCl reabsorption was impaired in TAL lacking THP. In summary, these results are compatible with a permissive role for THP in the modulation of NKCC2-dependent TAL salt reabsorptive function.