Spectroscopic detection of diols and sugars by a colour change in boronic acid-appended spirobenzopyrans

Boronic acid-appended spiropyrans have been synthesized in order to detect diols and sugars by a colour change: only when the boron atom could intramolecularly interact with the tertiary amine in the spiropyran moiety, did added diols and sugars change the shift of the spiropyran–merocyanine equilibrium, which was visually detectable as a colour change.