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PPS Issue 7 now online!

22 Jun 2012

The latest issue of PPS is now available online!

The front cover of this issue features work by Falk Renth, Friedrich Temps and colleagues from the University of Kiel, Germany, who report the sequential photoisomerisation dynamics of the push-pull azobenzene Disperse Red 1. Azobenzene forms the basis of a number of numerous derivatives with applications as photochromic switches, tiny light-driven molecular manipulators, actuators and engines, and small optical memory or logical devices. However, to reach the ambitious applications and designs for optimised functional azobenzene devices, we need to have detailed knowledge of the molecular dynamics of these molecules under different conditions.

Here the team looked at substituted azobenzene dye Dispersed Red 1 (DR1), which is an electron donor-electron acceptor dye and a so-called push-pull azobenzene. The donor-acceptor substitution introduces a strong charge-transfer character to the ππ* electronic transition. The authors studied the ultra-fast dynamics of this push-pull character after photoexcitation at λ_pump= 475 nm by femtosecond time-resolved transient absorption spectroscopy and fluorescence up-conversion spectroscopy. This study of the DR1 dye in solution has provided a basis for the interpretation of new experiments on the photodynamics of DR1 in complex environments and under application-relevant conditions.

This article is free to access for 6 weeks! Click on the link below to find out more…

Sequential photoisomerisation dynamics of the push–pull azobenzene Disperse Red 1, Julia Bahrenburg, Katharina Röttger, Ron Siewertsen, Falk Renth and Friedrich Temps, Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2012, 11, 1210-1219 DOI: 10.1039/C2PP05400K

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Which energy saving light bulb is best for sensitive skin?

13 Jun 2012

LEDs may provide a safe alternative for photosensitive individuals

UK researchers have compared the UV emissions given off by different types of energy saving light bulbs so that people with photosensitive skin can reduce their exposure to UV light. The team found that LED lamps give off the lowest UV levels.

The European Union has legislated that traditional incandescent bulbs should be phased out by the end of 2012 to be replaced by energy saving alternatives. All bulbs produce some UV light and there are guidelines on exposure limits for healthy individuals. However, no limits have been set for people with photosensitive skin conditions.

This lack of data inspired Leona Fenton and her colleagues from the University of Dundee to analyse the UV emissions from different types of energy saving light bulbs. ‘Many individuals are stockpiling incandescent lamps due to worry over there being no alternative that will not put their skin at risk,’ says Fenton.

Read the full article in Chemistry World

Link to journal article
Analysis of energy saving lamps for use by photosensitive individuals
L. Fenton, J. Ferguson and H. Moseley
Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2012, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C2PP25035G, Paper

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Themed issue dedicated to Kurt Schaffner now online

25 May 2012

PPS issue 6 is now online and is a themed issue in honour of Kurt Schaffner on the occasion of his 80^th birthday. You can read the introduction to this issue by Editors Silvia E. Braslavsky, Santi Nonell and Frans De Schryver here. Read the full themed issue online here.

The front cover features work form Tatsuo Arai and co-workers from the Graduate School of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Japan. Their paper investigates photoisomerization and energy transfer in naphthalene-terminated stilbene dentrimers. They demonstrate photoisomerazion via highly efficient energy transfer from the dendron group to the core stilbene and that intramolecular energy transfer efficiency was controlled by trans-cis photoisomerization.

Interested in knowing more? Read the full article for free for 6 weeks!

Photoisomerization and energy transfer in naphthalene-terminated stilbene dendrimers
Satoshi Nakazato , Tsutomu Takizawa and Tatsuo Arai
Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2012, 11, 885-888 DOI: 10.1039/C2PP05328D

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PPS Issue 5 now now online

26 Apr 2012

PPS Issue 5 is now online and features bioluminescent mushrooms on the cover. This image highlights the article from Cassius Stevani and co-workers from Brazil and the USA which provides evidence that a single bioluminescent system is shared by all known bioluminescent fungal lineages. Click here to read the full issue.

Bioluminescence has evolved independently at least 40 times in different lineages of organisms. Although all luminous systems involve the catalytic oxidation of a substrate (a luciferin) by a respective enzyme (a luciferase) or photoprotein the luciferases are not all homologous and each luminescence system has a luciferin with a specific structure. Therefore each system is commonly only found within a single lineage.

Although fungal bioluminescence is a common phenomenon, from the huge diversity in the Kingdom Fungi only 71 species have been verified as bioluminescent and they belong to four distantly related lineages. There has, for a long time been uncertainty about the participation of a luciferase in fungal bioluminescence and only recently did this group prove its involvement confirming the enzymatic nature of bioluminescence (Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2009, 8, 1416)

The question that this study addresses is whether the mechanism of bioluminescence is the same in all four evolutionary lineages, or whether each lineage has a unique mechanism for light emission implying independent origins. Cross-reactions in all possible combinations of hot (substrate/luciferin) and cold (enzyme/luciferase) water extracts from species representing each of the four bioluminescent lineages resulted in light emission. In comparison, cross-reactions of these extracts with extracts from closely related non-luminescent species yielded no light emission. These results suggest that all lineages share a single luminescent pathway and that this arose early in the evolution of the mushroom-forming order Agaricales.

Read the full article by clicking on the link below. Free to read for 6 weeks!

Evidence that a single bioluminescent system is shared by all known bioluminescent fungal lineages
Anderson G. Oliveira, Dennis E. Desjardin, Brian A. Perry and Cassius V. Stevani
Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2012, 11, 848-852 DOI: 10.1039/C2PP25032B

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RSC US Roadshows 2012 – Week 1: California

16 Apr 2012

As week 1 of the RSC US Raodshows 2012 begins, look out for Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences Managing Editor Sarah Ruthven who will be visiting universities in California this week.

Starting on the 16th April, RSC Publishing will be touring the United States of America to share more than 170 years experience of publishing in the chemical sciences. Sixteen universities across the country will be hosting these one-day events, which are open to all members of the hosting institute.

Week 1 sees RSC Publishing visit four universities in California:

16th April – University of California Irvine
17th April – University of California Los Angeles
18th April – University of California Santa Barbara
20th April – University of California Berkeley

Click here to find out more…

Keep up to date with the RSC US roadshow by following the Royal Society of Chemistry on Facebook, or look out for #RSC2012 on Twitter!

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PPS Issue 4 published online

22 Mar 2012

Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences issue 4 is now online; you can read the full issue here. The front cover of this issue highlights work from Gabriela Lagorio and co-workers from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina. I their article the chlorophyll fluorescence from kiwi fruit is studied and modeled from the emission of the different parts of the fruit.

Several fruits (apples, pears, bananas, kiwi fruit, mango, avocado, etc.) contain chlorophyll displaying red fluorescence similar to that emitted by leaves. Kiwi fruit is one of the few fruits containing chlorophyll that retains the green colour during ripening. As chlorophyll fluorescence is connected with the photosystems’ behaviour in the fruit, it may be explored as a tool for quality sensing. This manuscript contributes to the understanding of both basic biospectroscopy of chlorophyll fluorescence and the non-destructive monitoring of kiwi fruit during storage.

Read the full article for free for six weeks!

Modelling chlorophyll fluorescence of kiwi fruit (Actinidia deliciosa)
Johanna Mendes Novo, Analia Iriel and M. Gabriela Lagorio
Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2012, 11, 724-730 DOI: 10.1039/C2PP05299G

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PPS Blog

Archive for the ‘News’ Category

Top ten most accessed articles in May

PPS Issue 7 now online!

Which energy saving light bulb is best for sensitive skin?

Top ten most accessed articles in April

Themed issue dedicated to Kurt Schaffner now online

Top ten most accessed articles in March

PPS Issue 5 now now online

RSC US Roadshows 2012 – Week 1: California

Top ten most accessed articles in February

PPS Issue 4 published online

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