A series of tetraphenylethene (TPE) derivatives functionalized with highly potent electron‐deficient perfluoroaryl iodo‐triazole halogen bond (XB) donors for anion recognition are reported. 1H NMR titration experiments, fluorescence spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering measurements, TEM imaging and X‐ray crystal structure analysis reveal that the tetra‐substituted halogen bonding receptor forms luminescent nanoscale aggregates, the formation of which is driven by XB‐mediated anion coordination. This anion‐coordination‐induced aggregation effect serves as a powerful sensory mechanism, capable of luminescence chloride sensing at parts per billion concentration. Furthermore, the doubly substituted geometric isomers act as unprecedented photoswitchable XB donor anion receptors, where the composition of the photostationary state can be modulated by the presence of a coordinating halide anion.

A biomedical contrast agent serves to enhance the visualisation of a specific (potentially targeted) physiological region. In recent years, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) have developed as a flexible imaging platform of tuneable size/morphology, abundant surface chemistry, biocompatibility and otherwise useful physiochemical properties. This review discusses MSN structural types and synthetic strategies, as well as methods for surface functionalisation. Recent applications in biomedical imaging are then discussed, with a specific emphasis on magnetic resonance and optical modes together with utility in multimodal imaging.

A series of tetraphenylethene (TPE) derivatives functionalized with highly potent electron‐deficient perfluoroaryl iodo‐triazole halogen bond (XB) donors for anion recognition are reported. 1H NMR titration experiments, fluorescence spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering measurements, TEM imaging and X‐ray crystal structure analysis reveal that the tetra‐substituted halogen bonding receptor forms luminescent nanoscale aggregates, the formation of which is driven by XB‐mediated anion coordination. This anion‐coordination‐induced aggregation effect serves as a powerful sensory mechanism, capable of luminescence chloride sensing at parts per billion concentration. Furthermore, the doubly substituted geometric isomers act as unprecedented photoswitchable XB donor anion receptors, where the composition of the photostationary state can be modulated by the presence of a coordinating halide anion.

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Very high longitudinal relaxivity switches can be obtained with pH-responsive polymer-coated paramagnetic mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs), as the local environment traverses the 〖pK〗_a of the polymer coat (∆r_1 ~ 50...

Paramagnetically-doped polymer micelles, containing an ionizable poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) block, support high-contrast MR imaging at clinically relevant field strengths in a manner that is strongly pH responsive. A reversible switch...