Principle Investigator: Dr. Xiaolong Sun

Professor, Xi'an Jiaotong University

E-mail: xs2759@xjtu.edu.cn

WORK EXPERIENCE

10. 2018 – Now, Professor (Young Talent A level) in School of Life Sci. Tech., Xi’an Jiaotong Univ., Xi’an, China;

03. 2015 – 09. 2018, Postdoc Research Fellow in Chemistry, Univ. of Texas at Austin, U.S. Collaborator: Prof. Eric V. Anslyn and Prof. Andrew Ellington;

03. 2012 – 09. 2012, R&D Chemist, Tokyo Chemical Industry, Shanghai, China;   

EDUCATION

09. 2012 – 03. 2015, PhD, Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Univ. of Bath, UK; Supervisor: Prof. Tony D. James; Prof. Steven Bull (Univ. Leicester, UK) 

09. 2009 – 02. 2012, MSc, Applied Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, East China Univ. Sci. Tech., Shanghai, China; Supervisor: Prof. Xuhong Qian (Member Chinese Academy of Engineering);

• Fluorescence probes; Fluorescence dyes; Fluorescence materials; Fluorescence imaging

One of my research interests include organic synthesis to prepare small molecules fluorescence probes that can be utilized to understand and exploit biological/environmental systems, mainly in the fluorescent detection of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (Chem. Sci. 2014. 5, 3368-3373; Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 2963-2967), carbohydrates (Chem. Rev. 2015, 115, 8001-8037), self-propagating cascades for the detection of nerve agents (ACS. Cent. Sci. 2018, 4, 854-861; J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2017, 139, 4635-4638; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2017, 129, 9650-9654) and combination of small molecular fluorescent probe with supporting materials, such as graphene oxide. We proposed the strategy of selective detection of peroxynitrile over other reactive oxygen species by using boron-nitrogen interaction. Based on the traditional indicator displacement assay (IDA), we reported a new protocol for the selective detection of targets, referring to reaction-based indicator displacement assay (RIA) (Chem. Soc. Rev., 2021, DOI: 10.1039/c9cs00538b). We also developed new approaches to auto-inductive cascades for the optical sensing of fluoride/thiol: application in the ultratrace detection of phosphoryl nerve agents. And we explored and summarized the true mechanism by using nitrogen-boron interaction based fluorescent probe in the detection of saccharides (Nat. Chem. 2019, 11, 768-778; J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2018, 140, 2348–2354). Recently Indanoalkene photoluminescent platform, we develped a new fluorogenic tool for chemo-selective bioconjugation of vicinal dithiol-containing proteins and applied into live cellular imaging (Anal. Chem. 2023, DOI:10.1021/acs.analchem.3c01518). More work is coming.......

• Functional materials: soft materials; hydrogels; plastics

     Based on dynamic covalent bonding, we focuse on designing covalent adaptable networks and constructing constitutional dynamic networks in soft materials. We realized chemically-triggered synthesis, remodeling and degradation of soft materials via conjugate acceptor (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2020, 142, 3913-3922). Then, we successfuly tuned the transformations of hydrogels through dynamic covalent bonding and application in 2D/3D cellular imaging (ACS Macro Lett., 2021,10, 901-906). In addition, through new "click-declick" reactions, we extended into new conjugate acceptors and application of thermosetting plastics synthesis and degradation (ACS Macro Lett., 2021, 10, 1125-1131). Later on, we built up a new Indanoalkene photoluminescent platform and applied into visualizing chemically triggered synthesis, remodeling and degradation of soft materials (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2021, 43, 51, 21622). Based on, we create a self-propagating cascades intiated by thiol and realized chemically triggered soft material macroscopic degradation and fluorescence detection of GSH based on Indanoalkene photoluminescent platform (Poly. Chem., 2022, 13, 922-928). Recently, we developed a new strategy to synthesize hydrogels through bis-vinylogueous thiol esters conjugate acceptors with amine terminated PEG chain and degraded them efficiently through amine-amine metathesis (Front. Chem. Sci. Eng., 2022, 16(5): 2149). To fulfill the platform, we explored a cyclization induced emission on a ring-controled fluorophores and application in visualizing polymer degradation (Aggregate, 2023, e202200284) and displacement induced emission on the amine-coupled fluorophores and application in visualing drug release from stimuli-responsive materials (ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2023, 15, 19, 22967). More work is coming.......