Two-dimensional acetylenic scaffolding: extended donor-substituted perethynylated dehydroannulenes.

Starting from (Z)-bis(N,N-diisopropylanilino)-substituted tetraethynylethene (TEE), perethynylated octadehydro[12]- and dodecadehydro[18]annulenes were prepared by oxidative Hay coupling. The dodecadehydro[18]annulene with six peripheral N,N-diisopropylanilino substituents was characterized by X-ray crystallography. Elongation of the Z-bisdeprotected TEE by Cadiot-Chodkiewicz coupling with 1-bromo-2-(triisopropylsilyl)ethyne provided a Z-configured bis(butadiyne), which after alkyne deprotection afforded under Hay coupling conditions N,N-diisopropylanilino-substituted perethynylated hexadecadehydro[20]- and tetracosadehydro[30]annulenes.

Donor-substituted peralkynylated "radiaannulenes": novel all-carbon macrocycles with an intense intramolecular charge-transfer.

A novel class of planar, highly conjugated all-carbon macrocycles, which we christened "radiaannulenes", have been prepared based on acetylenic scaffolding using tetraethynylethene (TEE) building blocks; these structures are powerful electron acceptors and, upon peripheral substitution with electron-donating N,N-dialkylanilino groups, display intense intramolecular charge-transfer.

Acetylenic quinoxalinoporphyrazines as photosensitisers for photodynamic therapy.

A range of lipo- and hydrophilic derivatives of the new class of octaalkynyl tetra-[6,7]-quinoxalinoporphyrazines (TQuiPors), analogues of the naphthalocyanines, were prepared in two steps starting from functionalised hexa-1,5-diyne-3,4-diones. Divalent zinc and magnesium ions were introduced into the macrocyclic core. Whereas the triisopropylsilyl-, 3,5-di-tert-butylphenyl- and 4-triisopropylsilyloxyphenyl-terminated acetylenic TQuiPors are lipophilic and hence soluble in standard organic solvents, a polyethylene glycol-substituted derivative was found to dissolve in DMSO as well as in ethanol/water mixtures.

Pi-electron conjugation effects in antiaromatic dehydro[12]- and aromatic dehydro[18]-annulenes.

N,N-Dimethylanilino-substituted perethynylated dehydro[12]- and dehydro[18]-annulenes were prepared by oxidative acetylenic coupling of cis-bisdeprotected tetraethynylethene derivatives obtained by a new photochemical route; they display strongly bathochromically shifted longest-wavelength absorption bands compared to their silyl-substituted counterparts resulting from efficient intramolecular charge-transfer between the peripheral pi-electron donors and the electron-accepting central acetylenic core.