A generic small-molecule microarray immobilization strategy

Small-molecule microarrays are often limited by the requirement for each compound undergoing immobilization to contain a common functional group or by the need to prepare glass slides containing photo-reactive groups. Herein, we present a generic strategy that allows any compound library to be immobilized. This was achieved by printing a fluorous-tagged photo-reactive 3-aryl-3-trifluoromethyldiazirine, which undergoes non-selective insertion into compounds following UV-activation, onto fluorous-functionalized glass slides. The arrays could be reused following aqueous stripping and re-assessment of the compounds with the same protein or another target of interest.

The 3-aryl-3-trifluoromethyldiazirine photoreactive group conjugated to a fluoroalkyl chain allows the non-selective immobilization of compounds onto fluorous-functionalized glass slides and offers an approach for the generic fabrication of small-molecule microarrays.