Development of intelligent photo-functional molecules and materials toward materials science and neuro-biology
Our current interests lie in creating novel materials and methods to examine and regulate biological phenomena in neurons, as well as to convert energy of light, based on principals of photochemistry. In particular, we are now developing imaging and regulation methods with photo-functional nano-probes in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, we are now creating novel photo-functional materials for the energy conversion based on electron transfer reaction.
Diarylethene doped biocompatible polymer dots for fluorescence switching.We achieved practical fluorescence photoswitchable imaging at the single-particle level and in live macrophage cells using photoswitchable DE-doped PPV P-dots, and a Xe lamp with a 488-nm GFP filter cube.Chem. Asia. J, 2017, 12, 2660-2665.
X-ray excitable luminescent polymer dots doped with
an iridium( III ) complex.In this study, cyclometalated iridium( III ) complex-doped polymer
dots were synthesized and shown to emit luminescence upon
X-ray irradiation, potentially serving as a new probe for molecular
imaging during X-ray computed tomography.Chem. Commun., 2013, 49, 4319. (back cover)
Hard X-ray-induced optical luminescence via
biomolecule-directed metal clustersWe demonstrated that biomolecule-directed metal clusters are
applicable in the study of hard X-ray excited optical luminescence,
promising a new direction in the development of novel X-ray-
activated imaging probes.Chem. Commun., 2014, 50, 3549. (inside front cover)
Synthesis and photocatalytic activity of ultrathin two-dimensional porphyrin nanodisks via covalent organic framework exfoliationHere we present the synthesis of nanometre-thick two-dimensional (2D) porphyrin polymer nanodisks via the exfoliation of covalent organic frameworks, and evaluated their performance in the H2 evolution reaction under irradiation with broadband-light.Commun. Chem. 2019
