Zoe Pikramenou is a Reader In Supramolecular Photochemistry. She runs an active interdisciplinary research programme on Photophysics in Nanoscience and Biomolecular Chemistry using supramolecular design and synthesis, coordination chemistry, luminescence spectroscopy and imaging.
The research area has received an internationally recognised profile with invited lectures at international and national congresses covering a breadth of chemical areas, publications in leading internationally scientific journals.
International collaborations with leading scientists in interdisciplinary projects involving chemistry, physics and recently chemical engineering, medical and computer sciences. She has received research grants from EPSRC, MRC, Leverhulme Trust, the Royal Society for developing programmes on supramolecular wires, luminescent nanoparticles in biology and more recently an EPSRC Discipline Hopping Award with Chemical Engineering has fostered research in flow studies.
She has also led EU grants, a Marie Curie Research Training Network and a COST D31 group of 8 research teams on the assembly of cyclodextrin wires in solution and surfaces. Other international collaborations have taken place through ESF COST actions in optical imaging, supramolecular chemistry and metallodrugs.
Research webpages
Selected Publications:
A. C. Savage and Z. Pikramenou “Peptide coated gold nanoparticles that bind lanthanide ions” Chem. Comm.2011, 47, 6431-6433 DOI:10.1039/C1CC11477H.
D. J. Lewis, P. B. Glover, M. C. Solomons and Z. Pikramenou “Formation of Purely Heterometallic Lanthanide(III) Macrocycles Through Controlled Assembly of Disulfide Bonds” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2011, 133, 1033-1043. DOI:10.1021/ja109157g
D. J. Lewis, C. Bruce, S. Bohic, S. P. Hammond,D. Arbon, Z. Pikramenouand B. Kysela“Intracellular Synchrotron Nanoimaging and DNA Damage/Genotoxicity Testing of Novel Lanthanide-Coated Nanovectors”, Nanomedicine, 2010, 5, 1547-1557. DOI:10.2217/nnm.10.96.
L. L. Ruston, G. M. Robertsonand Z. Pikramenou “Luminescence Screening Assays for Identification of Sensitisers for Lanthanides based on the Controlled Formation of Ternary Lanthanide Complexes with DTPA-bisamide Ligands” Chem Asian J. 2010, 5, 571-580. DOI:10.1002/asia.200900367
J. A. Faiz, A. I. Philippopoulos, A. G. Kontos, P. Falaras and Z. Pikramenou “Functional Supramolecular Ruthenium Cyclodextrin Dyes for Nanocrystalline Solar Cells” Adv. Funct. Mat. 2007, 1, 54-58. DOI:10.1002/adfm.200600188.
P. B. Glover, A. P. Bassett, P. Nockemann, B. M. Kariuki, R. Van Deun and Z. Pikramenou “Fully fluorinated imidodiphosphinate shells for visible- and NIR-emitting lanthanides: hitherto unexpected effects of sensitizer fluorination on lanthanide emission properties” Chem. Eur. J. 2007, 13, 6308-6320. DOI: 10.1002/chem.200700087 .
J. A. Faiz, R. M. Williams, M. J. J. Pereira Silva, L. De Cola and Z. Pikramenou, “A Unidirectional Energy Transfer Cascade Process in a Ruthenium Junction Self-Assembled by a- and b- Cyclodextrins” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128, 4520-4521. DOI: 10.1021/ja058541h.
M. Haider and Z. Pikramenou, “Photoactive Metallocyclodextrins: Sophisticated Supramolecular Arrays for the Construction of Light Activated Miniature Devices” Chem. Soc. Rev., 2005, 34, 120-132. DOI: 10.1002/chin.200521273.
A. P. Bassett, S. W. Magennis, P. B. Glover, D. J. Lewis, N. Spencer, S. Parsons, R. M. Williams, L. De Cola, Z. Pikramenou “Highly Luminescent, Triple- and Quadruple-stranded, Dinuclear Eu, Nd, and Sm(III) Lanthanide Complexes Based on Bis-diketonate Ligands” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2004, 126, 9413-9424. DOI: 10.1021/ja048022z.
P. B. Glover, P. R. Ashton, L. J. Childs, A. Rodger, M. Kercher, R. M. Williams,L. De Cola,Z. Pikramenou “Hairpin-shaped Heterometallic Luminescent Lanthanide Complexes for DNA Intercalative Recognition” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2003, 125, 9918-9919. DOI: 10.1021/ja029886s.