Dai Masui

The Water Oxidation Bottleneck in Artificial Photosynthesis: How Can We Get Through It? An Alternative Route Involving a Two‐Electron Process

The state-of-the-art of research on artificial photosynthesis is briefly reviewed. Insights into how Nature takes electrons from water, the photon-flux density of sunlight, the time scale for the arrival of the next photon (electron-hole) at the oxygen-evolving complex, how Nature solves the photon-flux-density problem, and how we can get through the bottleneck of water oxidation are discussed. An alternate route for a two-electron process induced by one-photon excitation is postulated for getting through the bottleneck of water oxidation.

Size-matching effect on inorganic nanosheets: control of distance, alignment, and orientation of molecular adsorption as a bottom-up methodology for nanomaterials.

We have been investigating complexes composed of nanolayered materials with anionic charges such as clay nanosheets and dye molecules such as cationic porphyrins. It was found that the structure of dye assembly on the layered materials can be effectively controlled by the use of electrostatic host-guest interaction. The intermolecular distance, the molecular orientation angle, the segregation/integration behavior, and the immobilization strength of the dyes can be controlled in the clay-dye complexes. The mechanism to control these structural factors has been discussed and was established as a size-matching effect. Unique photochemical reactions such as energy transfer through the use of this methodology have been examined. Almost 100% efficiency of the energy-transfer reaction was achieved in the clay-porphyrin complexes as a typical example for an artificial light-harvesting system. Control of the molecular orientation angle is found to be useful in regulating the energy-transfer efficiency and in preparing photofunctional materials exhibiting solvatochromic behavior. Through our study, clay minerals turned out to serve as protein-like media to control the molecular position, modify the properties of the molecule, and provide a unique environment for chemical reactions.

Two distinct amyloid β-protein (Aβ) assembly pathways leading to oligomers and fibrils identified by combined fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, morphology and toxicity analyses

Nonfibrillar assemblies of amyloid β-protein (Aβ) are considered to play primary roles in Alzheimer disease (AD). Elucidating the assembly pathways of these specific aggregates is essential for understanding disease pathogenesis and developing knowledge-based therapies. However, these assemblies cannot be monitored in vivo, and there has been no reliable in vitro monitoring method at low protein concentration. We have developed a highly sensitive in vitro monitoring method using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) combined with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and toxicity assays. Using Aβ labeled at the N terminus or Lys16, we uncovered two distinct assembly pathways. One leads to highly toxic 10–15-nm spherical Aβ assemblies, termed amylospheroids (ASPDs). The other leads to fibrils. The first step in ASPD formation is trimerization. ASPDs of ∼330 kDa in mass form from these trimers after 5 h of slow rotation. Up to at least 24 h, ASPDs remain the dominant structures in assembly reactions. Neurotoxicity studies reveal that the most toxic ASPDs are ∼128 kDa (∼32-mers). In contrast, fibrillogenesis begins with dimer formation and then proceeds to formation of 15–40-nm spherical intermediates, from which fibrils originate after 15 h. Unlike ASPD formation, the Lys16-labeled peptide disturbed fibril formation because the Aβ16–20 region is critical for this final step. These differences in the assembly pathways clearly indicated that ASPDs are not fibril precursors. The method we have developed should facilitate identifying Aβ assembly steps at which inhibition may be beneficial.

Unique Solvatochromism of a Membrane Composed of a Cationic Porphyrin-Clay Complex

A novel optically transparent membrane composed of porphyrin-clay mineral complexes was developed. Reversible solvatochromism behavior of the membrane was successfully observed, due to an orientation change of porphyrin in the clay interlayer space. The lambda(max) value of porphyrin was 423 nm in acetone, while it was 464 nm in hexane. The color of the membrane changed from pink to green through to brown, when Sn porphyrin was used. The mechanism for solvatochromism in the present system is very unique compared to those for conventionally reported materials.

A Photoactivated Artificial Muscle Model Unit: Reversible, Photoinduced Sliding of Nanosheets

A novel photoactivated artificial muscle model unit is reported. Here we show that organic/inorganic hybrid nanosheets reversibly slide horizontally on a giant scale and the interlayer spaces in the layered hybrid structure shrink and expand vertically by photoirradiation. The sliding movement of the system on a giant scale is the first example of an artificial muscle model unit having much similarity with that in natural muscle fibrils. In particular, our layered hybrid molecular system exhibits a macroscopic morphological change on a giant scale (~1500 nm) relative to the molecular size of ~1 nm by means of a reversible sliding mechanism.

Mechanism of silver(I)-catalyzed Mukaiyama aldol reaction: active species in solution in AgPF 6 -(S)-BINAP versus AgOAc-(S)-BINAP systems

Abstract Silver(I)-diphosphine complex is an effective catalyst for Mukaiyama Aldol reaction in polar solvents. AgPF6-(S)-BINAP cationic chiral complex indicated a good activity and could afford fairly high enantioselectivity in the reaction of aromatic aldehydes and silyl enol ethers. On the other hand, AgOAc-(S)-BINAP system afforded the aldol product of the absolute configuration opposite to that by AgPF6-(S)-BINAP and very high catalytic activity was shown. The structure and equilibrium state of Ag(I)-BINAP complexes in solution were examined to understand the reaction mechanism. In AgPF6 system [Ag((S)-BINAP)2]PF6 (1a), [Ag((S)-BINAP)]PF6 (1b), [Ag2((S)-BINAP)](PF6)2 (1c) and AgPF6 are present in solution. The active species of the aldol reaction in DMF is [Ag((S)-BINAP)]PF6 (1b), which exists as a minor species in solution. For this cationic Ag(I) catalyst, cyclic transition state containing substrate and silyl enol ether is assumed. In AgOAc-(S)-BINAP system, active species is also monomeric AgOAc((S)-BINAP) (2b) species which exists as a major component in solution and strong interaction was observed with a silyl enol ether. The reaction by AgOAc-(S)-BINAP catalyst is concluded to proceed as follows: nucleophile forms a complex with AgOAc-(S)-BINAP species and is activated. This complex attacks aldehydes to afford aldol adduct via acyclic transition state.

How is the water molecule activated on metalloporphyrins? Oxygenation of substrates induced through one-photon/two-electron conversion in artificial photosynthesis by visible light

The reaction mechanism of the highly efficient (phi = 0.60), selective photochemical epoxidation of alkenes sensitized by CO-coordinated tetra(2,4,6-trimethyl)phenylporphyrinatoruthenium(II) (Ru(II)TMP(CO)), with water acting both as an electron and oxygen atom donor, was investigated. The steady-state light irradiation of the reaction mixture indicated the formation of the Ru(II)TMP (CO) cation radical under neutral conditions, which was effectively trapped by an hydroxide ion to regenerate the starting sensitizer. By means of a laser flash photolysis experiment, the formation of the cation radical as the primary process from the triplet excited state of Ru(II)TMP(CO) was clearly observed. Four kinds of transients were detected in completely different ranges of the delay time: the excited triplet state of Ru(II)TMP(CO) [delay time region <20 micros], the cation radical of Ru(II)TMP(CO)(CH3CN) [20-50 micros], the hydroxyl-coordinated Intermediate [I] [50-200 micros], and the cyclohexane-attached Intermediate [II] [200 micros-8 ms]. A reaction mechanism was revealed that involves RuTMP(CO) cation radical formation from the triplet excited state of the sensitizer, followed by attack of an hydroxide ion to form an hydroxyl-coordinated Ru-porphyrin (Intermediate [I]) and subsequent reaction with cyclohexene to form Intermediate [II]. The kinetics for each step of the successive processes was carefully analyzed and their rate constants were determined. The two-electron oxidation of water by one-photon irradiation, as revealed in the photochemical epoxidation, is proposed to be one of the more promising candidates to get through the bottleneck of water oxidation in artificial photosynthesis.

Photoassisted oxygenation of alkane catalyzed by ruthenium complexes using 2,6-dichloropyridine N-oxide under visible light irradiation

The chloro(Me(2)SO)ruthenium(II) complexes with tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine or its derivative catalyses the selective, stereospecific, and photoregulative alkane oxidation in the presence of 2,6-dichloropyridine N-oxide under visible light irradiation.