Boosted stepwise NO photorelease with overall fluorescent reporting in a molecular dyad for antimicrobial photoinactivation.
- 1PhotoChemLab, Department of Drug and Health Sciences, University of Catania I-95125 Italy [email protected].
- 2Laboratory of Photobiology Applied to Health, Research and Development Institute, University of Vale do Paraíba Urbanova I-2911 Brazil.
Abstract
We have designed and synthesized a molecular dyad in which an N-nitroso-nitroaniline-based nitric oxide (NO) photodonor (NOP), capable of releasing two NO molecules through a stepwise mechanism, is covalently linked to an anthracene (An) unit via a methylene spacer. The dyad exhibits absorption and emission features that are not merely the sum of its individual components, but rather the result of strong electronic interactions in both the ground and excited states. Excitation of the dyad with blue light significantly enhances the sequential NO photogeneration efficiency compared to the isolated NOP. This effect is likely encouraged by photoinduced electron and energy transfer processes, with An acting as the donor and NOP as the acceptor, providing additional activation pathways to the direct NOP excitation. Furthermore, these intramolecular processes cause a dramatic quenching of the typical anthracene fluorescence, which is fully restored only upon the release of the second NO molecule, thereby enabling the system to act as a fluorescent self-reporter for the overall NO release. Antibacterial tests on Gram-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa demonstrate that photoexcitation of the dyad induces remarkable antibacterial activity against both planktonic bacterial strains and the eradication of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms due to the photodynamic effect of NO.
Related
- Genomic analysis and antimicrobial resistance profiling of Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates from urinary tract infections in India: prevalence of class A β-lactamase with molecular docking and simulation insights.
- Novel Palladium(II) β-Diketonate Complexes: Synthesis, Dual Antimicrobial/Anticancer Activity, and Molecular Insights into DNA/Protein Interactions
- Co-Circulation of ST11-KL30 and ST11-KL64 Carbapenem-Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in Urumqi, Xinjiang, China: Molecular Epidemiology, Antimicrobial Resistance, and Virulence
- Molecular epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance determinants of Corynebacterium diphtheriae causing infections in Karachi, Pakistan, 2023–2024
- GC-MS identification of a lacthydrazide-class siderophore produced by Streptomyces sp. VITGV100: its antimicrobial activity and molecular docking
BibTeX
@article{sollima2026boosted,
title = {{Boosted stepwise NO photorelease with overall fluorescent reporting in a molecular dyad for antimicrobial photoinactivation.}},
author = {Samantha Sollima and Tassia J Martins and Cristina Parisi and Francesca Laneri and Juliana Guerra Pinto and Isabelle de Paula Ribeiro Brambilla and Juliana Ferreira-Strixino and Salvatore Sortino},
journal = {RSC advances},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1039/d6ra09028a},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42846322},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Boosted stepwise NO photorelease with overall fluorescent reporting in a molecular dyad for antimicrobial photoinactivation.
AU - Samantha Sollima
AU - Tassia J Martins
AU - Cristina Parisi
AU - Francesca Laneri
AU - Juliana Guerra Pinto
AU - Isabelle de Paula Ribeiro Brambilla
AU - Juliana Ferreira-Strixino
AU - Salvatore Sortino
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/07
JO - RSC advances
DO - 10.1039/d6ra09028a
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42846322
AB - We have designed and synthesized a molecular dyad in which an N-nitroso-nitroaniline-based nitric oxide (NO) photodonor (NOP), capable of releasing two NO molecules through a stepwise mechanism, is covalently linked to an anthracene (An) unit via a methylene spacer. The dyad exhibits absorption and emission features that are not merely the sum of its individual components, but rather the result of strong electronic interactions in both the ground and excited states. Excitation of the dyad with blue light significantly enhances the sequential NO photogeneration efficiency compared to the isolated NOP. This effect is likely encouraged by photoinduced electron and energy transfer processes, with An acting as the donor and NOP as the acceptor, providing additional activation pathways to the direct NOP excitation. Furthermore, these intramolecular processes cause a dramatic quenching of the typical anthracene fluorescence, which is fully restored only upon the release of the second NO molecule, thereby enabling the system to act as a fluorescent self-reporter for the overall NO release. Antibacterial tests on Gram-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa demonstrate that photoexcitation of the dyad induces remarkable antibacterial activity against both planktonic bacterial strains and the eradication of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms due to the photodynamic effect of NO.
SN - 2046-2069
ER -