23 research outputs found

    An Ultrafast Spectroscopic and Quantum-Chemical Study of the Photochemistry of Bilirubin : Initial Processes in the Phototherapy for Neonatal Jaundice

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    Bilirubin is a degradation product of haem, which is constantly formed in all mammals. Increased levels of bilirubin in humans lead to jaundice, a condition that is very common during the first days after birth. This neonatal jaundice can routinely be treated by phototherapy without any serious side effects. During this treatment, bilirubin undergoes a photoreaction to isomers that can be excreted. The most efficient photoreaction is the isomerisation around a double bond (Z-E-isomerisation), which results in more soluble photoproducts. The work presented in this thesis shows results of a femtosecond optical spectroscopy study, combined with quantum-mechanical investigations, of the mechanism of isomerisation of bilirubin. The spectroscopic research was conducted with bilirubin in organic solvents, and in buffer complexed by human serum albumin. This albumin complex is present in the blood, and has thus medical importance. Quantum-chemical calculations (CASSCF) on a bilirubin model were used to explain experimental results. The fluorescence decay observed with femtosecond spectroscopy shows an ultrafast component (~120 fs), which is explained by exciton localisation, followed by processes with a lifetime of about 1-3 ps. These are interpreted as the formation of a twisted intermediate, which decays with a lifetime of 10-15 ps back to the ground state, as observed by absorption spectroscopy. CASSCF calculations, in combination with the experimental results, suggest the ca. 1-3 ps components to be relaxation to the twisted S1 minimum, followed by the crossing of a barrier, from where further relaxation takes place through a conical intersection back to the ground state. Time-dependent DFT calculations were utilised to analyse the absorption spectrum of bilirubin. Good agreement with the measured spectrum was achieved, and low-lying states were observed, that need further investigation. The theoretically obtained CD spectrum provides direct evidence that bilirubin preferentially binds to human serum albumin in the enantiomeric P-form at neutral pH.Bilirubin är en nedbrytningsprodukt av hem som ständigt bildas hos alla däggdjur. En förhöjd bilirubinkoncentration i den mänskliga kroppen kan leda till gulsot, något som är mycket vanligt under de första dagarna efter födelsen (neonatal gulsot). Fototerapi används rutinmässigt som säker behandlingsmetod, under vilken bilirubin genomgår en fotoreaktion till en isomer som kan utsöndras. Den mest effektiva fotoreaktionen är en Z-Eisomerisation, vilken leder till lösligare fotoprodukter. Arbetet som presenteras i denna avhandling visar resultaten av en kombinerad femtosekund optisk-spektroskopisk och kvantmekanisk undersökning av mekanismen bakom bilirubins isomerisation. Den spektroskopiska studien genomfördes med bilirubin, löst i organiska lösningsmedel och i buffert i komplex med humant serumalbumin. Detta albuminkomplex finns i blodet, och är därför av medicinskt intresse. Kvantmekanistiska CASSCFberäkningar på en bilirubinmodell användes för att förklara de experimentella resultaten. Det uppmätta fluorescence sönderfallet visar ultrasnabba komponenter (~120 fs). Dessa tolkas som excitonlokalisering, som följs av bildandet av ett vridet intermediat med en hastighetskonstant på ca. 1 ps-1(beroende på lösningsmedlet). Absorptionsmätningar visar att detta intermediat sönderfaller tillbaka till grundtillståndet med en livstid på 10-15 ps. CASSCF beräkningar, i kombination med de experimentella resultaten, tyder på att sönderfallet med livslängden på ca. 1 ps är en relaxation till det vridna S1-tillståndet. Reaktionsvägen därifrån antas passera en barriär till en konisk genomskärning, som möjliggör snabb relaxation till grundtillståndet. Tidsberoende DFT-beräkningar användes för att analysera bilirubins absorptionsspektrum, vilket gav bra överensstämmelse med uppmätta data. Dessutom hittades ett tillstånd med låg excitationsenergi, som kräver ytterligare studier. Med hjälp av det beräknade CD-spectret kunde det visas att bilirubin binder till albumin i P-formen vid neutralt pH

    An Ultrafast Spectroscopic and Quantum-Chemical Study of the Photochemistry of Bilirubin : Initial Processes in the Phototherapy for Neonatal Jaundice

    No full text
    Bilirubin is a degradation product of haem, which is constantly formed in all mammals. Increased levels of bilirubin in humans lead to jaundice, a condition that is very common during the first days after birth. This neonatal jaundice can routinely be treated by phototherapy without any serious side effects. During this treatment, bilirubin undergoes a photoreaction to isomers that can be excreted. The most efficient photoreaction is the isomerisation around a double bond (Z-E-isomerisation), which results in more soluble photoproducts. The work presented in this thesis shows results of a femtosecond optical spectroscopy study, combined with quantum-mechanical investigations, of the mechanism of isomerisation of bilirubin. The spectroscopic research was conducted with bilirubin in organic solvents, and in buffer complexed by human serum albumin. This albumin complex is present in the blood, and has thus medical importance. Quantum-chemical calculations (CASSCF) on a bilirubin model were used to explain experimental results. The fluorescence decay observed with femtosecond spectroscopy shows an ultrafast component (~120 fs), which is explained by exciton localisation, followed by processes with a lifetime of about 1-3 ps. These are interpreted as the formation of a twisted intermediate, which decays with a lifetime of 10-15 ps back to the ground state, as observed by absorption spectroscopy. CASSCF calculations, in combination with the experimental results, suggest the ca. 1-3 ps components to be relaxation to the twisted S1 minimum, followed by the crossing of a barrier, from where further relaxation takes place through a conical intersection back to the ground state. Time-dependent DFT calculations were utilised to analyse the absorption spectrum of bilirubin. Good agreement with the measured spectrum was achieved, and low-lying states were observed, that need further investigation. The theoretically obtained CD spectrum provides direct evidence that bilirubin preferentially binds to human serum albumin in the enantiomeric P-form at neutral pH.Bilirubin är en nedbrytningsprodukt av hem som ständigt bildas hos alla däggdjur. En förhöjd bilirubinkoncentration i den mänskliga kroppen kan leda till gulsot, något som är mycket vanligt under de första dagarna efter födelsen (neonatal gulsot). Fototerapi används rutinmässigt som säker behandlingsmetod, under vilken bilirubin genomgår en fotoreaktion till en isomer som kan utsöndras. Den mest effektiva fotoreaktionen är en Z-Eisomerisation, vilken leder till lösligare fotoprodukter. Arbetet som presenteras i denna avhandling visar resultaten av en kombinerad femtosekund optisk-spektroskopisk och kvantmekanisk undersökning av mekanismen bakom bilirubins isomerisation. Den spektroskopiska studien genomfördes med bilirubin, löst i organiska lösningsmedel och i buffert i komplex med humant serumalbumin. Detta albuminkomplex finns i blodet, och är därför av medicinskt intresse. Kvantmekanistiska CASSCFberäkningar på en bilirubinmodell användes för att förklara de experimentella resultaten. Det uppmätta fluorescence sönderfallet visar ultrasnabba komponenter (~120 fs). Dessa tolkas som excitonlokalisering, som följs av bildandet av ett vridet intermediat med en hastighetskonstant på ca. 1 ps-1(beroende på lösningsmedlet). Absorptionsmätningar visar att detta intermediat sönderfaller tillbaka till grundtillståndet med en livstid på 10-15 ps. CASSCF beräkningar, i kombination med de experimentella resultaten, tyder på att sönderfallet med livslängden på ca. 1 ps är en relaxation till det vridna S1-tillståndet. Reaktionsvägen därifrån antas passera en barriär till en konisk genomskärning, som möjliggör snabb relaxation till grundtillståndet. Tidsberoende DFT-beräkningar användes för att analysera bilirubins absorptionsspektrum, vilket gav bra överensstämmelse med uppmätta data. Dessutom hittades ett tillstånd med låg excitationsenergi, som kräver ytterligare studier. Med hjälp av det beräknade CD-spectret kunde det visas att bilirubin binder till albumin i P-formen vid neutralt pH

    Complex Formation with the Iodide Electrolyte Influences Electron Dynamics in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

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    Ground state complexes between the components of the iodide/triiodide redox couple and D149, a wellknown organic dye used in dye sensitized solar cells, have been detected in acetonitrile and on semiconductor surfaces. Generally, in acetonitrile, these complexes have high formation constants in the case of the donor moiety of D149, D149ester and D149. These complexes adsorb on semiconductor surfaces and show different electron dynamics on ZrO2 and TiO2 in comparison to D149 itself. Such complexes on semiconductor surfaces can certainly limit the efficiency of a working cell based on similar organic dyes

    The Solid-State Emission of Bilirubin

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    Bilirubin (BR) is a human-biological compound formed during the haem metabolism that is insoluble in most solvents. BR has shown short emission lifetime with low quantum yield in limited number of solvents, due to the non-radiative ultrafast isomerization process. However, in solid-state, red-shifted emission of long-lived species of BR are detected at room temperature, due to the aggregation-induced emission formed by Frenkel exciton of J-system. This solid-state emission of BR depends on the crystal quality of BR as shown by SEM and XRD. This study allows for better understandings of the photophysics of BR in solid-state, opening opportunities for its applications in luminescent biological sensors. </p

    Concentration and Solvent Effects on the Excited State Dynamics of the Solar Cell Dye D149: The Special Role of Protons

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    D149 is one of the best-performing metal-free, organic dyes for dye-sensitized solar cells. Excited state lifetimes strongly depend on the solvent used and have previously been reported to be between 100 and 700 ps, without any mechanistic explanation being given. We have earlier shown that photoisomerization is one of several deactivation processes. Here, we report that lifetimes in certain solvents depend on concentration, even in very dilute (nanomolar) solutions. A detailed investigation of the concentration dependence enables us to assign a second, faster deactivation channel besides isomerization that reduces lifetimes further: a ground-state, hydrogen-bonded 1:1 complex of D149 with acids or interaction with protic solvents leads to excited state quenching, most probably through excited state proton transfer. This includes self-quenching caused by D149’s own carboxylic group through intermolecular interaction, accounting for the concentration-dependent lifetimes. We are now able to dissect the complex excited state behavior into its components, allowing us to attribute rate constants to the isomerization and the excited-state proton transfer process. We are also able to explain the excited state of D149 in a wide range of environmental conditions, in the presence of acids/bases, at different concentrations as well as with varying temperatures. Furthermore, we determine the barrier for isomerization, a thermally activated process. The consequences of these effects on solar cells are discussed. Also we show that ultrafast techniques like femtosecond pump–probe and upconversion inherently do not provide the required responsiveness for work with the concentration ranges required here, whereas single photon counting with its ultimate sensitivity is able to resolve the underlying processes

    Optical properties of nanocrystalline WO3 and WO3-x thin films prepared by DC magnetron sputtering

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    The optical properties of tungsten trioxide thin films prepared by DC magnetron sputtering, withdifferent oxygen vacancy (Vo) concentration, have been studied by spectrophotometry andphotoluminescence (PL) emission spectroscopy. Absorption and PL spectra show that the filmsexhibit similar band gap energies, Eg 2.9 eV. The absorption spectra of the films show twopronounced absorption bands in the near-infrared region. One peak (P1) is located atapproximately 0.7 eV, independent of Vo concentration. A second peak (P2) shifts from 0.96 eV to1.16 eV with decreasing Vo concentration. Peak P1 is assigned to polaron absorption due totransitions between tungsten sites (W5þ!W6þ), or an optical transition from a neutral vacancystate to the conduction band, Vo0!W6þ. The origin of peak P2 is more uncertain but may involveþ1 and þ2 charged vacancy sites. The PL spectra show several emission bands in the range 2.07 to3.10 eV in the more sub-stoichiometric and 2.40 to 3.02 eV in the less sub-stoichiometric films.The low energy emission bands agree well with calculated optical transition energies of oxygenvacancy sites, with dominant contribution from neutral and singly charged vacancies in the lesssub-stoichiometric films, and additional contributions from doubly charged vacancy sites in themore sub-stoichiometric films

    Twisted Intramolecular Charge Transfer (TICT) Controlled by Dimerization : An Overlooked Piece of the TICT Puzzle

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    Organic dyes have shown high efficiencies in solar cells, which is mainly attributed to the push-pull strategy present in such dyes upon attaching to the semiconductor surfaces. We deeply studied the fundamental photophysical properties of cyanoacrylic dyes, mostly the L1 dye, and found unique emission properties that depend on many factors such as the solvent polarity and the concentration of the dye and could present a complete emission picture about this family of dyes. The L1 dye shows an intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) emission state at low concentrations (approximately nanomolar scale) and shows a twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) emission state in specific solvents upon increasing the concentration to the micromolar scale. Moreover, the associated emission lifetimes of the ICT and TICT states of the L1 dye depend on solvent basicity, highlighting the role of hydrogen bond formation on controlling such states. Density functional theory calculations are performed to gain insight into the photophysical properties of the dye and revealed that H-bonding between the carboxylic groups triggers the dimerization at low concentrations. Using femtosecond transient absorption, we assigned the rate of TICT formation to be in the range (160-650 fs)(-1), depending on the size of the studied cyanoacrylic dye. Therefore, we add herein a new dimension for controlling the formation of the TICT state, in addition to the solvent polarity and acceptor strength parameters. These findings are not limited to the studied dyes, and we expect that numerous organic carboxylic acids dyes show similar properties

    Highly Emissive Biological Bilirubin Molecules : Shedding New Light on the Phototherapy Scheme

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    Bilirubin (BR) is the main end-product of the hemoglobin catabolism. For decades, its photophysics has been mainly discussed in terms of ultrafast deactivation of the excited state in solution, where, indeed, BR shows a very low green emission quantum yield (EQY), 0.03%, resulting from an efficient nonradiative isomerization process. Herein, we present, for the first time, unique and exceptional photophysical properties of solid-state BR, which amend by changing the type of crystal, from a closely packed alpha crystal to an amorphous loosely packed beta crystal. BR alpha crystals show a very bright red emission with an EQY of ca. 24%, whereas beta crystals present, in addition, a low green EQY of ca. 0.5%. By combining density functional theory (DFT) calculations and time-resolved emission spectroscopy, we trace back this dual emission to the presence of two types of BR molecules in the crystal: a "stiff" monomer, M1, distorted by particularly strong internal H-bonds and a "floppy" monomer, M2, having a structure close to that of BR in solution. We assign the red strong emission of BR crystals to M1 present in both the alpha and beta crystals, while the low green emission, only present in the amorphous (beta) crystal, is interpreted as M2 emission. Efficient energy-transfer processes from M2 to M1 in the closely packed a crystal are invoked to explain the absence of the green component in its emission spectrum. Interestingly, these unique photophysical properties of BR remain in polar solvents such as water. Based on these unprecedented findings, we propose a new model for the phototherapy scheme of BR inside the human body and highlight the usefulness of BR as a strong biological fluorescent probe
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