Profluorescent stable free radicals derived from aminoacids and related compounds

Project code:	PCE-2023-0267
Contract no.:	75PCE/01.07.2025
Time span:	01.07.2025 – 30.06.2027
Budget:	1147368 lei

Team:
Petre IONITA	Director
Irina ZARAFU	Experienced researcher
Augustin MADALAN	Experienced researcher
Iulia MATEI	Experienced researcher
Gabriela IONITA	Experienced researcher
Alexandru NECULAE	Postdoc
Mihai RADUCA	PhD student
Alexandru BUCUR	Master student

Abstract:

    This project has as main topic the synthesis and structural characterization of novel organic bifunctional molecules that contain in the same structural unit a stable free radical moiety and a fluorescent part. Such derivatives are known as profluorescent radicals because free radicals contain an unpaired electron that perturb the electronic state of the molecule quenching the fluorescence (luminescence), which can be fully restored by the reduction of the radical part. As radicals will be used derivatives of TEMPO, PROXYL or DPPH (nitroxides or hydrazyl stable free radicals), while as fluorophores oxadiazoles or other similar derivatives (NBD-chloride, dansyl-chloride, fluorescamine). An important part of the hybrid molecule will be the linker between these two units, and we aim to use different types of aminoacids or related compounds, as biologically active linker. Practically, the synthesis will be achieved in a two-step process, attaching the fluorophore and the free radical to an aminoacid. Fully characterization of the whole range compounds will provide important insight on the dual-monitoring of several physical, chemical or biological processes (antioxidant, imaging agents, cytotoxicity, oxidative stress). Besides, such compounds will be employed as dual sensors for detection and quantification of reactive oxygen or nitrogen species, and this part can be extended in materials science for monitoring ageing processes or in detection of energetic materials (explosives).

Objectives:

   
O1 - design and synthesis of novel fluorescent-paramagnetic bifunctional molecules;
O2 - fully characterization of the compounds from O1 (including theoretical calculations);
O3 - applications/demonstration of their successful use in the dual detection of RONS;
O4 - acquiring a simple (practical) chemical test/procedure for the dual detection of RONS;
O5 - biological evaluation of the bifunctional compounds (antioxidant, imaging agents, cytotoxicity, oxidative stress);
O6 - analysis and optimization/correlation between all obtained data/information (synthetic strategies, physical and chemical behavior, practical applications).

Results and Dissemination: