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Artificial photosynthesis aims at efficient water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen, by exploiting solar light. As a priority requirement, this process entails the integration of suitable multi-electron catalysts with light absorbing units, where charge separation is generated in order to drive the catalytic routines. The final goal could be the transposition of such an asset into a photoelectrocatalytic cell, where the two half-reactions, proton reduction to hydrogen and water oxidation to oxygen, take place at two appropriately engineered photoelectrodes. We herein report a covalent approach to anchor a Co(ii) water oxidation catalyst to a Ru(ii) polypyridine photosensitizer unit; photophysical characterisation and the catalytic activity of such a dyad in a light activated cycle are reported, and implications for the development of regenerative systems are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synthesis, characterization and DNA binding studies of a series of polycationic fullerene adducts are reported. These cationic species, exhibiting reasonably high water solubility and a heterogeneous distribution of positive charges, can efficiently complex plasmid DNA. Electrophoresis studies show different DNA binding efficiencies for different adducts, some of which can be considered excellent candidates for DNA binding therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing interest of the scientific community in carbon nanotubes and graphene, fullerene C60still plays an important role in the family of nanocarbons. A quarter of a century of research on fullerenes has been dedicated to understanding the way to produce stable, well-characterized and highly soluble fullerene derivatives, which retain the original properties of C60. The applications in a wide number of fields, especially on new materials design, have enriched the literature with fascinating examples where fullerenes are directly involved. We report here a brief summary of recent achievements in some exciting applications of fullerene derivatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]