Synthesis of decacationic [60]fullerene decaiodides giving photoinduced production of superoxide radicals and effective PDT-mediation on antimicrobial photoinactivation.

We report a novel class of highly water-soluble decacationic methano[60]fullerene decaiodides C60[>M(C3N6(+)C3)2]-(I(-))10 [1-(I(-))10] capable of co-producing singlet oxygen (Type-II) and highly reactive hydroxyl radicals, formed from superoxide radicals in Type-I photosensitizing reactions, upon illumination at both UVA and white light wavelengths. The O2(-)·-production efficiency of 1-(I(-))10 was confirmed by using an O2(-)·-reactive bis(2,4-dinitrobenzenesulfonyl)tetrafluorofluorescein probe and correlated to the photoinduced electron-transfer event going from iodide anions to (3)C60*[>M(C3N6(+)C3)2] leading to C60(-)·[>M(C3N6(+)C3)2]. Incorporation of a defined number (ten) of quaternary ammonium cationic charges per C60 in 1 was aimed to enhance its ability to target pathogenic Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial cells. We used the well-characterized malonato[60]fullerene diester monoadduct C60[>M(t-Bu)2] as the starting fullerene derivative to provide a better synthetic route to C60[>M(C3N6(+)C3)2] via transesterification reaction under trifluoroacetic acid catalyzed conditions. These compounds may be used as effective photosensitizers and nano-PDT drugs for photoinactivation of pathogens.

Synthesis and characterization of positively charged pentacationic [60]fullerene monoadducts for antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation.

We designed and synthesized two analogous pentacationic [60]fullerenyl monoadducts, C60(>ME1N6⁺C3) (1) and C60(>ME3N6⁺C3) (2), with variation of the methoxyethyleneglycol length. Each of these derivatives bears a well-defined number of cationic charges aimed to enhance and control their ability to target pathogenic Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial cells for allowing photodynamic inactivation. The synthesis was achieved by the use of a common synthon of pentacationic N,N',N,N,N,N-hexapropylhexa(aminoethyl)amine arm (C3N6⁺) having six attached propyl groups, instead of methyl or ethyl groups, to provide a well-balanced hydrophobicity-hydrophilicity character to pentacationic precursor intermediates and better compatibility with the highly hydrophobic C60 cage moiety. We demonstrated two plausible synthetic routes for the preparation of 1 and 2 with the product characterization via various spectroscopic methods.