The prop-2-ynyloxy carbonyl function (POC): A new amino-protecting group removable from sulfur-containing peptides by ultrasonic irradiation with tetrathiomolybdate under mild and neutral conditions

The prop-2-ynyloxy carbonyl function (POC) which can be cleaved under mild and neutral conditions in the presence of benzyltriethylammonium tetrathiomolybdate has been developed as a new protecting group for amines. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Polymer optoelectronic structures for retinal prosthesis

This commentary highlights the effectiveness of optoelectronic properties of polymer semiconductors based on recent results emerging from our laboratory, where these materials are explored as artificial receptors for interfacing with the visual systems. Organic semiconductors based polymer layers in contact with physiological media exhibit interesting photophysical features, which mimic certain natural photoreceptors, including those in the retina. The availability of such optoelectronic materials opens up a gateway to utilize these structures as neuronal interfaces for stimulating retinal ganglion cells. In a recently reported work entitled ``A polymer optoelectronic interface provides visual cues to a blind retina,'' we utilized a specific configuration of a polymer semiconductor device structure to elicit neuronal activity in a blind retina upon photoexcitation. The elicited neuronal signals were found to have several features that followed the optoelectronic response of the polymer film. More importantly, the polymer-induced retinal response resembled the natural response of the retina to photoexcitation. These observations open up a promising material alternative for artificial retina applications.