V. A. Kuzmitsky

Bio: V. A. Kuzmitsky is an academic researcher from National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. The author has contributed to research in topics: Absorption spectroscopy & Quantum yield. The author has an hindex of 9, co-authored 18 publications receiving 701 citations.

Thioflavin T as a molecular rotor: fluorescent properties of thioflavin T in solvents with different viscosity.

Abstract: The effect of solvent viscosity on thioflavin T (ThT) fluorescent properties is analyzed to understand the molecular mechanisms of the characteristic increase in ThT fluorescence intensity accompanying its incorporation into the amyloid-like fibrils. To this end, the dependencies of the ThT quantum yield and fluorescence lifetime on temperature and glycerol content in the water−glycerol mixtures are studied. It has been found that fluorescent properties of ThT are typical for the specific class of fluorophores known as molecular rotors. It has been established that the low ThT fluorescence intensity in the solvents with low viscosity is caused by the nonradiative deactivation of the excited state associated with the torsional motion of the ThT benzthiazole and aminobenzene rings relative to each other, which results in the transition of ThT molecule to nonfluorescent twisted internal charge transfer (TICT) state. The rate of this process is determined by the solvent viscosity, whereas the emission does oc...

Computational study of thioflavin T torsional relaxation in the excited state.

Abstract: Quantum-chemical calculations of the Thioflavin T (ThT) molecule in the ground S0 and first excited singlet S1 states were carried out. It has been established that ThT in the ground state has a noticeable nonplanar conformation: the torsion angle phi between the benzthiazole and the dimethylaminobenzene rings has been found to be approximately 37 degrees. The energy barriers of the intramolecular rotation appearing at phi = 0 and 90 degrees are quite low: semiempirical AM1 and PM3 methods predict values approximately 700 cm-1 and ab initio methods approximately 1000-2000 cm(-1). The INDO/S calculations of vertical transitions to the S1(abs) excited state have revealed that energy ES1(abs) is minimal for the twisted conformation with phi = 90 degrees and that the intramolecular charge-transfer takes place upon the ThT fragments' rotation from phi = 0 to 90 degrees. Ab initio CIS/RHF calculations were performed to find optimal geometries in the excited S1 state for a series of conformers having fixed phi values. The CIS calculations have predicted a minimum of the S1 state energy at phi approximately 21 degrees; however, the energy values are 1.5 times overestimated in comparison to experimental data. Excited state energy dependence on the torsion angle phi, obtained by the INDO/S method, reveals that ES1(fluor) is minimal at phi = approximately 80-100 degrees, and a plateau is clearly observed for torsion angles ranging from 20 to 50 degrees. On the basis of the calculation results, the following scheme of photophysical processes in the excited S1 state of the ThT is suggested. According to the model, a twisted internal charge-transfer (TICT) process takes place for the ThT molecule in the excited singlet state, resulting in a transition from the fluorescent locally excited (LE) state to the nonfluorescent TICT state, accompanied by torsion angle phi growth from 37 to 90 degrees. The TICT process effectively competes with radiative transition from the LE state and is responsible for significant quenching of the ThT fluorescence in low-viscosity solvents. For viscous solvents or when the ThT molecule is located in a rather rigid microenvironment, for example, when it is bound to amyloid fibrils, internal rotation in the dye molecule is blocked due to steric hindrance, which results in suppression of the LE --> TICT quenching process and in a high quantum yield of fluorescence.

Solvent Polarity Effect on Nonradiative Decay Rate of Thioflavin T.

Abstract: It has been established earlier that fluorescence quantum yield of thioflavin T (ThT)—a probe widely used for amyloid fibrils detection—is viscosity-dependent, and photophysical properties of ThT can be well-described by the fluorescent molecular rotor model, which associates twisted internal charge transfer (TICT) reaction with the main nonradiative decay process in the excited state of the dye. Solutions of ThT in a range of polar solvents were studied using steady-state fluorescence and sub-picosecond transient absorption spectroscopy methods, and we showed that solvent effect on nonradiative transition rate knr cannot be reduced to the dependence on viscosity only and that ∼3 times change of knr can be observed for ThT in aprotic solvents and water, which correlates with solvent polarity. Different behavior was observed in alcohol solutions, particularly in longer n-alcohols, where TICT rate was mainly determined by rotational diffusion of ThT fragments. Quantum-chemical calculations of S0 → S1 transi...

Two-photon polymerization initiators for three-dimensional optical data storage and microfabrication

Abstract: Two-photon excitation provides a means of activating chemical or physical processes with high spatial resolution in three dimensions and has made possible the development of three-dimensional fluorescence imaging, optical data storage, and lithographic microfabrication. These applications take advantage of the fact that the two-photon absorption probability depends quadratically on intensity, so under tight-focusing conditions, the absorption is confined at the focus to a volume of order λ3 (where λ is the laser wavelength). Any subsequent process, such as fluorescence or a photoinduced chemical reaction, is also localized in this small volume. Although three-dimensional data storage and microfabrication have been illustrated using two-photon-initiated polymerization of resins incorporating conventional ultraviolet-absorbing initiators, such photopolymer systems exhibit low photosensitivity as the initiators have small two-photon absorption cross-sections (δ). Consequently, this approach requires high laser power, and its widespread use remains impractical. Here we report on a class of π;-conjugated compounds that exhibit large δ (as high as 1, 250 × 10−50 cm4 s per photon) and enhanced two-photon sensitivity relative to ultraviolet initiators. Two-photon excitable resins based on these new initiators have been developed and used to demonstrate a scheme for three-dimensional data storage which permits fluorescent and refractive read-out, and the fabrication of three-dimensional micro-optical and micromechanical structures, including photonic-bandgap-type structures.

Extrinsic fluorescent dyes as tools for protein characterization.

Abstract: Noncovalent, extrinsic fluorescent dyes are applied in various fields of protein analysis, e.g. to characterize folding intermediates, measure surface hydrophobicity, and detect aggregation or fibrillation. The main underlying mechanisms, which explain the fluorescence properties of many extrinsic dyes, are solvent relaxation processes and (twisted) intramolecular charge transfer reactions, which are affected by the environment and by interactions of the dyes with proteins. In recent time, the use of extrinsic fluorescent dyes such as ANS, Bis-ANS, Nile Red, Thioflavin T and others has increased, because of their versatility, sensitivity and suitability for high-throughput screening. The intention of this review is to give an overview of available extrinsic dyes, explain their spectral properties, and show illustrative examples of their various applications in protein characterization.

Fluorescent dyes and their supramolecular host/guest complexes with macrocycles in aqueous solution.

Abstract: Fluorescent Dyes and Their Supramolecular Host/Guest Complexes with Macrocycles in Aqueous Solution Roy N. Dsouza, Uwe Pischel,* and Werner M. Nau* School of Engineering and Science, Jacobs University Bremen, Campus Ring 1, D-28759 Bremen, Germany Centro de Investigaci on en Química Sostenible (CIQSO) and Departamento de Ingeniería Química, Química Física y Química Org anica, Universidad de Huelva, Campus de El Carmen s/n, E-21071 Huelva, Spain

Nonlinear Optical Properties of Porphyrins

Abstract: Porphyrins and phthalocyanines have outstanding chemical and thermal stability. The macrocyclic structure and chemical reactivity of tetrapyrroles offers architectural flexibility and facilitates the tailoring of chemical, physical and optoelectronic parameters. The specific optical properties of the tetrapyrrole macrocycle combined with the synthetic methodologies now available and the already available theoretical and spectroscopic knowledge on their optical behavior make porphyrins a target of choice for this area. They are versatile organic nanomaterials with a rich photochemistry and their excited state properties are easily modulated through conformational design, molecular symmetry, metal complexation, orientation and strength of the molecular dipole moment, size and degree of conjugation of the π-systems, and appropriate donor-acceptor substituents. Here we review the structural chemistry and optical properties of recently synthesized porphyrin derivatives that offer potential for nonlinear optical (NLO) applications and complement existing studies on phthalocyanines. Classes of interest include the classic A4 symmetric tetrapyrroles, while optimized systems include push-pull porphyrins, oligomeric and supramolecular self-assembled systems, films and nanoparticle systems, and highly conjugated porphyrin arrays.