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The research focuses on the design of photoremovable protecting groups that can be used to deprotect biological substrates of an organic compound by photolysis. The deprotection of the protecting group via photolysis requires heterolysis of a bond to the substrate. Heterolysis of a C-O or C-S -bonds in a zwitterionic intermediate is proposed. The photochemical electrocyclic reactions studied involve acrylanilides, benzothiophene carboxanilides, and N-(9-oxothioxanthenyl) benzothiophene carboxamides. The most efficient photochemical electrocyclic ring closure and leaving group expulsion found thus far occurs with benzothiophene carboxanilides, which has considerable potential for use as cage compounds.

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Dr, Sarker was born in Bangladesh. He got his B.Sc. & M.Sc. at University of Dhaka. He received his Ph.D. degree in Organic Photochemistry from Marquette University in 2012. He is currently working as Research Chemist for USDA-ARS at the Eastern Regional Research Center,PA. He is the author of a number of scientific publications.

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