Surfaces containing reactive ester polymer brushes were functionalized with cyclopropenone-masked dibenzocyclooctynes for the light activated immobilization of azides using catalyst-free click chemistry. The photodecarbonylation reaction in the amorphous brush layer is first order for the first 45 s with a rate constant of 0.022 s(-1). The catalyst-free cycloaddition of surface bound dibeznocyclooctynes proceeds rapidly in the presence of azides under ambient conditions. Photolithography using a shadow mask was used to demonstrate patterning with multiple azide containing molecules. This surface immobilization strategy provides a general and facile platform for the generation of multicomponent surfaces with spatially resolved chemical functionality.

Although metal free cycloadditions of cyclooctynes and azides to give stable 1,2,3-triazoles have found wide utility in chemical biology and material sciences, there is an urgent need for faster and more versatile bioorthogonal reactions. We have found that nitrile oxides and diazocarbonyl derivatives undergo facile 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions with cyclooctynes. Cycloadditions with diazocarbonyl derivatives exhibited similar kinetics compared to azides whereas the reaction rates of cycloadditions with nitrile oxides were much faster. Nitrile oxides could conveniently be prepared by direct oxidation of the corresponding oximes with BAIB and these conditions made it possible to perform oxime formation, oxidation and cycloaddition as a one-pot procedure. The methodology was employed to functionalize the anomeric center of carbohydrates with various tags. Furthermore, oximes and azides provide an orthogonal pair of functional groups for sequential metal free click reactions and this feature makes it possible to multi-functionalize biomolecules and materials by a simple synthetic procedure that does not require toxic metal catalysts.

Irradiation of 3-hydroxy-2-naphthalenemethanol (3a) and 2-hydroxy-1-naphthalenemethanol (4a) results in efficient (Phi(254) = 0.17 and 0.20) dehydration and the formation of isomeric naphthoquinone methides, 2,3-naphthoquinone-3-methide (1) and 1,2-naphthoquinone-1-methide (2), respectively. In aqueous solution, naphthoquinone methides 1 and 2 undergo rapid hydration to regenerate starting materials (tau(H2O) (1) = 7.4 ms and tau(H2O) (2) = 4.5 ms at 25 degrees C). The hydration reaction is strongly catalyzed by the hydroxide ion but shows acid catalysis only at pH < 1. Reactive intermediates 1 and 2 can be intercepted by other nucleophiles, such as the azide ion (k(N3)(1) = 2.0 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1) and k(N3)(2) = 3.0 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1)) or thiol (k(SH)(1) = 2.2 x 10(5) M(-1) s(-1) and k(SH)(2) = 3.3 x 10(5) M(-1) s(-1)). Ethyl vinyl ether readily reacts with 1 and 2 (k(DA)(1) = 4.1 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1) and k(DA)(2) = 6.0 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1)) to produce Diels-Alder adducts in excellent yield. o-Naphthoquinone methides 1 and 2 were also generated by photolysis of 3-ethoxymethyl- (3b) and 1-(ethoxymethyl)-2-naphthols (4b), as well as from (2-hydroxy-3-naphthyl)methyl- (3c) and [(2-hydroxy-1-naphthyl)methyl] trimethylammonium iodides (4c). Laser flash photolysis of 3a,b and 4a,b allows the detection of short-lived (tau(25 degrees C) approximately 12 micros) precursors of naphthoquinone methides 1 and 2. On the basis of the precursor reactivity and the results of DFT calculations, 2H-naphthoxete structure was assigned to these species.

2-Napthoquinone-3-methides (oNQMs) generated by efficient photodehydration (Φ=0.2) of 3-(hydroxymethyl)-2-naphthol undergo facile hetero-Diels-Alder addition (k(D-A)∼ 4×10(4) M(-1) s(-1)) to electron-rich polarized olefins in an aqueous solution. The resulting photostable benzo[g]chromans are produced in high to quantitative yield. The unreacted oNQM is rapidly hydrated (k(H2O) ∼145 s(-1)) to regenerate the starting diol. This competition between hydration and cycloaddition makes oNQMs highly selective, since only vinyl ethers and enamines are reactive enough to form the Diels-Alder adduct in an aqueous solution; no cycloaddition was observed with other types of alkenes. To achieve photolabeling or photoligation of two substrates, one is derivatized with a vinyl ether moiety, while 3-(hydroxymethyl)-2-naphthol is attached to the other via an appropriate linker. The light-induced Diels-Alder "click" strategy permits the formation of either a permanent or hydrolytically labile linkage. Rapid kinetics of this photoclick reaction (k=4×10(4) M(-1) s(-1)) is useful for time-resolved applications. The short lifetime (τ ∼7 ms in H(2)O) of the active form of the photoclick reagent prevents its migration from the site of irradiation, thus, allowing for spatial control of the ligation or labeling.

A very facile reaction between photochemically generated o-naphthoquinone methides (oNQMs) and thiols is employed for reversible light-directed surface derivatization and patterning. A thiol-functionalized glass slide is covered with an aqueous solution of a substrate conjugated to 3-(hydroxymethyl)-2-naphthol (NQMP). Subsequent irradiation via shadow mask results in the efficient conversion of NQMP into reactive oNQM species in the exposed areas. The latter react with thiol groups on the surface, producing thioether links between the substrate and the surface. Unreacted oNQM groups are rapidly hydrated to regenerate NQMP. The short lifetime of oNQM in aqueous solution prevents its migration from the site of irradiation, thus allowing for the spatial control of the surface derivatization. A two-step procedure was employed for protein patterning: photobiotinylation of the surface with an NQMP-biotin conjugate followed by staining with FITC-avidin. The orthogonality of oNQM-thiol and azide click chemistry allowed for the development of a sequential click strategy, which might be useful for the immobilization of light-sensitive compounds. The thioether linkage produced by the reaction of oNQM and a thiol is stable under ambient conditions but can be cleaved by UV irradiation, regenerating the free thiol. This feature allows for the removal or replacement of immobilized substrates.