In nature, photosynthesis is driven by solar light and a large proportion of the visible spectrum is absorbed by the light harvesting complexes (LHCs), which then transfer the energy to the reaction center. Inspired by nature, we implemented a light harvesting energy transfer cascade within biomimetic lipid bilayers of liposomes built with DPPC (1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine), using membrane-anchored fluorescein, 2-(3,6-dihydroxy-9H-xanthen-9-yl)-5-dodecanamidobenzoic acid (FlC12) as primary absorber and membrane anchored eosin Y, hexadecyl 2-(2,4,5,7-tetrabromo-3,6-dihydroxy-9H-xanthen-9-yl)benzoate (EYC16), as energy acceptor to sensitize oxygen and generate the reactive oxygen species 1O2. Finally, the model substrate nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) is oxidized by 1O2 within the compartmentalizing liposome nanoreactors. It was observed that our metal-free LHC system has only a minor effect on the photooxidation rate of NADH when the nanoreactor membrane is functionalized symmetrically. By contrast, asymmetric membrane functionalization of the liposome nanoreactor membranes leads to acceleration by 16% to 27% when using multi-colored light emitting diodes (LED) or simulated solar light, respectively.
Keywords: compartmentalization; energy transfer; liposomes; photosensitization, singlet oxygen.
© 2026 The Author(s). Angewandte Chemie International Edition published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH.