Direct 3-Acylation of Indolizines by Carboxylic Acids for the Practical Synthesis of Red Light-Releasable Caged Carboxylic Acids.

To enhance the practicality of photouncaging system using 3-acyl-2-methoxyindolizines, direct acylation of indolizines with carboxylic acids was developed using condensation reagents, generally used for peptide coupling. This method allowed for caging a broad range of carboxylic acids with indolizines. The method enabled a facile synthesis of water-soluble caged bioactive carboxylic acids having an intramolecular photosensitizer. The efficient release of carboxylic acids from the synthesized caged compounds upon red light irradiation was confirmed in neutral buffered solutions.