The Role of Surfactant Head Group Charge on Binding of Hoechst 33258 with Micelles

Owing to the diverse biological application, photophysical behaviour of Hoechst 33258 (H33258) is an important topic in biophysical research. Here, we have reported the photophysical behavior of H33258 in model biomembrane mimicking micellar microenvironment. In order to understand the molecular mechanism of the interaction of H33258 with micelles, we have used cationic (Hexadecetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB)), anionic (sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS)), and non‐ionic ( t‐ octylphenoxypolyoxyethanol, Triton‐X100 (TX 100)) micelles. From the steady‐state emission study the evaluated apparent binding constant ( K b ) values for the complex formation between H33258 and CTAB, SDS and TX 100 micelle were (1.45±0.42)×10 5 , (31.95±4.89)×10 5 and (3.10±0.73)×10 5 M −1 , respectively. Thus, it was found that the K b value was greater in the case of anionic micelle than non‐ionic and cationic micelles. Such differences in K b values were due to the electrostatic interaction and hydrogen bond formation between the probe molecule and micelles. In addition, time‐resolved fluorescence decay and time‐resolved fluorescence anisotropy studies were performed to understand the dynamical behavior of H33258 in presence of micelles. The interaction of H33258 with micelles might be useful to study the structure and dynamics of different bio‐membranes and to formulate new drug delivery system.