Reply to the Correspondence on "Visible Light-Switchable Chalcone-Flavylium Photochromic Systems in Aqueous Media".

In a Correspondence on our previous work, "Visible light-switchable chalcone flavylium photochromic systems in aqueous media" published in this journal in 2023, Pina et al. comment on certain aspects of our work, raising skepticism and questions about the switching of the chalcone-flavylium systems. We appreciate their comments and acknowledge the remarkable contribution of Pina and co-workers in this field.

Visible-light-switchable Chalcone-Flavylium Photochromic Systems in Aqueous Media.

The chalcone-flavylium photochromic system switches in aqueous media. However, the chalcone→flavylium conversion requires detrimental ultra-violet (UV) light for the switching which deters their applications in the biological domain. To address this issue, we have synthesized strategically modified chalcone scaffolds that can be reversibly switched to the flavylium forms with visible light ranging from 456 nm (blue) to 640 nm (red).

Photoresponsive Small Molecule Enzyme Mimics.

Enzyme mimics emulate the catalytic activities of their natural counterparts. Light-responsive enzyme mimics are an emerging branch of biomimetic chemistry where the catalytic activities can be controlled reversibly by light. These light-responsive systems are constructed by incorporating a suitable photoswitchable unit around the active-site mimic.