A General Approach to Biocompatible Branched Fluorous Tags for Increased Solubility in Perfluorocarbon Solvents.

A modular, cost-effective route to a library of branched fluorous tags with two short, biocompatible, fluorinated chains (C6F13) is reported. These branched fluorous tags provide high fluorous content without the use of long-chain linear perfluorocarbons, which have rising health concerns due to their bioaccumulation. By attaching these tags to a porphyrin, it is demonstrated that high solubility can be achieved in fluorous solvents that are readily cleared from mammals. This work enhances the biocompatibility of perfluorocarbon nanoemulsions for photodynamic therapy.