Orthogonal Design of a Water-Soluble <i>meso</i>-Tetraphenylethene-Functionalized Pillar[5]arene with Aggregation-Induced Emission Property and Its Therapeutic Application
Xueqi Tian, Minzan Zuo, Pengbo Niu, K. Velmurugan, Kaiya Wang, Yue Zhao, Leyong Wang, Xiao‐Yu Hu
Abstract
An orthogonal strategy was utilized for synthesizing a novel water-soluble pillar[5]arene (m-TPEWP5) with tetraphenylethene-functionalized on the bridged methylene group (meso-position) of the pillararene skeleton. The obtained macrocycle exhibit both the aggregation-induced emission (AIE) effect and interesting host–guest property. Moreover, it can be made to bind with a tailor-made camptothecin-based prodrug guest (DNS-G) to form AIE-nanoparticles based on host–guest interaction and the fluorescence resonance energy transfer process for fabricating a drug delivery system. This novel type of water-soluble AIE-active macrocycle can serve as a potential fluorescent material for cancer diagnosis and therapy. In addition, the present orthogonal strategy for designing meso-functionalized aromatic macrocycles may pave a new avenue for creating novel supramolecular structures and functional materials.