A simple route to photodynamic chlorin e6 amide derivatives

Amide derivatives of the porphyrin Ce6 have demonstrated efficacy for antimicrobial photodynamic therapy or inactivation of microorganisms. Traditional methods for their synthesis involve carbodiimide coupling agents for direct coupling or, as a more attractive option, to make key mono- and dianhydrides that are then able to react with a variety of nucleophiles. We report a process to efficiently create a Ce6 dianhydride by the simple expedient …