Interactions of ferrocenyl triphenylamine compounds with biomimetic membranes studied by nanoplasmonic sensing and micro differential scanning calorimetry

Ferrocene is a versatile organometallic compound consisting of two cyclopentadienyl rings bonded to an iron atom. The introduction of various functional groups into the cyclopentadienyl rings enhances its chemical, physical, and electronic properties. Such modifications are extensively applied in the field of catalysis, material sciences, medicine, drug delivery, chemical, and bio-sensing. Similarly, the ferrocene moiety can be linked to bulky fluoro-chromogenic units like triphenylamine for various biomedical imaging and biosensing applications, due to the fluorescent properties of triphenylamine. In this work, triphenylamine is bonded to a ferrocene moiety via a ketone group, resulting into a ‘hybrid novel material’ which may exhibit synergistic properties that neither molecule could achieve alone. For extensive characterization, three additional novel derivatives, namely, ferrocenyl triphenylamine thioketone, ferrocenyl triphenylamine thiophene ketone, and ferrocenyl triphenylamine thiophene thioketone were synthesized, and included in the study. The hydrophobicity and their interactions with lipid membranes were investigated using nanoplasmonic sensing, micro differential scanning calorimetry, and fluorescence spectroscopy.