Visible-Light-Induced Hydrodifluoromethylation of Unactivated Alkenes with Difluoroacetic Anhydride.

We herein described a practical and efficient protocol for hydrodifluoromethylation of unactivated alkenes using readily available difluoroacetic anhydride as a difluoromethyl source by merging photocatalysis and -hydroxyphthalimide activation. This method features a wide substrate scope and excellent compatibility with various functional groups, as demonstrated by more than 50 examples, including bioactive molecules and pharmaceutical derivatives. Mechanism investigation indicated that -hydroxyphthalimide may also serve as the hydrogen atom donor.

Probe with large Stokes shift for effective cysteine imaging in living cells.

A new fluorescence probe L, which featured with a large Stokes shift (216 nm), was designed for sensitive detection of cysteine (Cys) and a potential sensing mechanism derived from excited state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) was proposed. More importantly, probe L exhibits higher selective to Cys than other amino acid due to its specific cyclization between acrylate group and Cys. Meanwhile, the probe L shows a low detection limit of 8.