“…Furthermore, nitro and amino groups can be easily functionalized, 11,13,14 and conjugated with bioactive molecules, such as monoclonal antibodies, 15 oligomeric carboranyl phosphate diesters, 16 polymer backbones, 17 and cyclodextrins. 18 Current synthetic routes to mono-, di-and tri-nitro functionalized meso-tetraphenylporphyrins involve total synthesis via a crossed Rothemund approach, 17 or by electrophilic nitration of the p-phenyl groups of mesotetraphenylporphyrin (TPP, 1). 19,20 In the first method co-condensation of pyrrole, benzaldehyde and nitrobenzaldehyde, results in low to moderate yields of the targeted porphyrins, which can be tedious to purify from the resulting reaction mixtures.…”