Light-induced Ligation of <i>o</i>-Quinodimethanes with Gated Fluorescence Self-reporting
Florian Feist, Leona L. Rodrigues, Sarah L. Walden, Tim Krappitz, Tim R. Dargaville, Tanja Weil, Anja S. Goldmann, James P. Blinco, Christopher Barner‐Kowollik
Abstract
-quinodimethane ether or thioether) with electron-deficient alkynes is induced by UV or visible light. In contrast to previously reported ligation techniques directly leading to fluorescent products, the fluorescence is turned on after the photoligation. Thus, the light absorption of the fluorophore does not undermine the photoligation via competitive absorption, and as a result, photobleaching or side reactions of the fluorophore are not observed. Critically, the gated generation of a fluorescent product allows for fluorometric determination of the conversion. We employ a simple synthesis strategy for heterobifunctional electron-deficient alkynes allowing for facile functionalization of payload molecules.