Functionalization of the 4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene (BODIPY) core

The new BODIPY systems 1 and 2 were prepared and then used as substrates to explore SNAr and F-B displacement reactions. Chloride was easily displaced from 1 by a piperidine/ester, methylmagnesium bromide selectively displaced fluoride, and cyanide could attack both sites. System 2 readily added soft nucleophiles to the electrophilic carbon atoms, providing a new method for bioconjugation of BODIPYs to proteins while also introducing a 19F probe.