Adsorption and dynamics of long-range interacting fullerenes in a flexible, two-dimensional, nanoporous porphyrin network.

Herein, a detailed investigation of the adsorption and dynamics of C60 and C70 fullerenes hosted in a self-assembled, two-dimensional, nanoporous porphyrin network on a solid Ag surface is presented. Time-resolved scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) studies of these supramolecular systems at the molecular scale reveal distinct host-guest interactions giving rise to a pronounced dissimilar mobility of the two fullerenes within the porphyrin network. Furthermore, long-range coverage-dependent interactions between the all-carbon guests, which clearly affect their mobility and are likely mediated by a complex mechanism involving the Ag substrate and the flexible porphyrin host network, are observed. At increased fullerene coverage, this unprecedented interplay results in the formation of large fullerene chains and islands. By applying a lattice gas model with nearest-neighbor interactions and by evaluating the fullerene-pair distribution functions, the respective coverage-dependent guest-guest interaction energies are estimated.     

Structural elucidation of dendritic host-guest complexes by X-ray crystallography and molecular dynamics simulations

The multiple monovalent binding of adamantyl-urea poly(propyleneimine) dendrimers with carboxylic acid-urea guests was investigated using molecular dynamics simulations and X-ray crystallography to better understand the structure and behavior of the dynamic multivalent complex in solution. The results from the two methods are consistent and suggest a preferred molecular picture of this complicated aggregate of multiple components. The guest molecules can bind to the dendrimer in a variety of ways although most involve hydrogen-bonding interactions between urea groups of the dendrimer with urea and/or carboxylic acid groups of the guest. In addition, acid-base interactions between the carboxylic acid of the guest and the tertiary amine in the interior of the dendritic host are present. Our proposed structure gives important information about the predominant dynamic interactions between the host and guest and illustrates how they fit together and interact with each other.     

Direct assignment of enantiofacial discrimination on single heterocyclic substrates by self-induced CD

The first direct assignment of highly dynamic enantiofacial discrimination acting on a single heterocyclic substrate has been achieved by a combination of experimental and theoretical CD spectroscopy. The interaction of chirally modified hosts based on triphenylene ketals with appropriate prochiral guests can lead to the preferential formation of one diastereomeric host-guest complex. This reversible stereoselective binding transmits the chiral information from remote chiral groups in the host to the strongly absorbing triphenylene chromophore, which gives rise to self-induced CD. This effect was exploited for the determination of the enantiofacial recognition in various host-guest systems. Inversion of the steric demand either of the chiral substituents at the host or of the prochiral guest leads to almost complete inversion of the resulting CD spectra. For the assignment of the absolute stereochemistry of the complexes, a combined molecular dynamics/quantum-chemical approach was successfully employed. Despite the size and the highly dynamic character of the supramolecular systems, fundamental properties of the systems and details of the spectra were simulated accurately, providing access to fast and reliable assignment of the enantiofacial preference. The results are highly consistent with available X-ray data.     

Diffusion NMR spectroscopy in supramolecular and combinatorial chemistry: an old parameter--new insights

Intermolecular interactions in solution play an important role in molecular recognition, which lies at the heart of supramolecular and combinatorial chemistry. Diffusion NMR spectroscopy gives information over such interactions and has become the method of choice for simultaneously measuring diffusion coefficients of multicomponent systems. The diffusion coefficient reflects the effective size and shape of a molecular species. Applications of this technique include the estimation of association constants and mapping the intermolecular interactions in multicomponent systems as well as investigating aggregation, ion pairing, encapsulation, and the size and structure of labile systems. Diffusion NMR spectroscopy can also be used to virtually separate mixtures and screen for specific ligands of different receptors, and may assist in finding lead compounds.     

Ultrafast dynamics of myoglobin probed by time-resolved resonance Raman spectroscopy

Recent experimental work carried out in this laboratory on the ultrafast dynamics of myoglobin (Mb) is summarized with a stress on structural and vibrational energy relaxation. Studies on the structural relaxation of Mb following CO photolysis revealed that the structural change of heme itself, caused by CO photodissociation, is completed within the instrumental response time of the time-resolved resonance Raman apparatus used (approximately 2 ps). In contrast, changes in the intensity and frequency of the iron-histidine (Fe-His) stretching mode upon dissociation of the trans ligand were found to occur in the picosecond regime. The Fe-His band is absent for the CO-bound form, and its appearance upon photodissociation was not instantaneous, in contrast with that observed in the vibrational modes of heme, suggesting appreciable time evolution of the Fe displacement from the heme plane. The band position of the Fe-His stretching mode changed with a time constant of about 100 ps, indicating that tertiary structural changes of the protein occurred in a 100-ps range. Temporal changes of the anti-Stokes Raman intensity of the v4 and v7 bands demonstrated immediate generation of vibrationally excited heme upon the photodissociation and decay of the excited populations, whose time constants were 1.1 +/- 0.6 and 1.9 +/- 0.6 ps, respectively. In addition, the development of the time-resolved resonance Raman apparatus and prospects in this research field are described.     

Dynamics in host-guest complexes of molecular tweezers and clips

The dynamics in the host-guest complexes of the molecular tweezers 1 a,b and clips 2 a,b with 1,2,4,5-tetracyanobenzene (TCNB, 3) and tropylium tetrafluoroborate (4) as guest molecules were analyzed by temperature-dependent 1H NMR spectroscopy. The TCNB complexes of tweezers 1 a,b were found to be particularly stable (dissociation barrier: DeltaG(++)=16.8 and 15.7 kcal mol(-1), respectively), more stable than the TCNB complexes of clips 2 a,b and the tropylium complex of tweezer 1 b (dissociation barrier: DeltaG(++)=12.4, 11.2, and 12.3 kcal mol(-1), respectively). A detailed analysis of the kinetic and thermodynamic data (especially the negative entropies of activation found for complex dissociation) suggests that in the transition state of dissociation the guest molecule is still clipped between the aromatic tips of the host molecule. The 1H NMR analysis of the TCNB complexes 3@1 b and 3@2 a at low temperatures (T<-80 degrees C) showed that 3 undergoes fast rotation inside the cavity of tweezer 1 b or clip 2 a (rotational barrier: DeltaG( not equal)=11.7 and 8.3 kcal mol(-1), respectively). This rotation of a guest molecule inside the host cavity can be considered to be the dynamic equilibration of noncovalent conformers. In the case of clip complex 3@2 a the association and rotational barriers are smaller by DeltaDeltaG(++)=3-4 kcal mol(-1) than those in tweezer complexes 3@1 a,b. This can be explained by the more open topology of the trimethylene-bridged clips compared to the tetramethylene-bridged tweezers. Finally, the bromo substituents in the newly prepared clip 2 b have a substantial effect on the kinetics and thermodynamics of complex formation. Clip 2 b forms weaker complexes with (TCNB, 3) and tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ, 12) and a more stable complex with 2,4,7-trinitrofluoren-9-ylidene (TNF, 13) than the parent clip 2 a. These results can be explained by a less negative electrostatic potential surface (EPS) inside the cavity and a larger van der Waals contact surface of 2 b compared to 2 a. In the case of the highly electron-deficient guest molecules TCNB and TCNQ the attractive electrostatic interaction is predominant and hence responsible for the thermodynamic complex stability, whereas in the case of TNF with its extended pi system, dispersion forces are more important for host-guest binding.     

Nitroxide radicals as probes for exploring the binding properties of the cucurbit[7]uril host

EPR spectroscopy was used for the first time to explore the binding properties of cucurbit[7]uril (CB7), a representative member of the cucurbituril family. Evidence for the formation of a complex between nitroxide radicals and the host system in an aqueous solution was provided by large changes in the nitrogen hyperfine splitting, attributed to the different polar environments experienced by the included radical. In the presence of alkali cations, the EPR spectra of benzyl tert-butyl nitroxide were characterised by new signals attributed to the radical hosted in the CB7 cavity in which one metal cation is in close contact with the nitroxidic oxygen. The formation of the coordination complex results in a substantial increase in the electron spin density on the nitrogen in inverse order with respect to the size of the cation owing to increased localisation of negative charge on the oxygen atom from bonding to the alkali cation. The EPR spectra showed selective line-broadening effects as a result of metal exchange between bulk water and the coordination complex. Analysis of the EPR linewidth variations allowed us to measure the corresponding kinetic rate constants for the first time. NMR spectroscopy showed that this behaviour is not peculiar to nitroxides but is also exhibited by the related carbonyl compounds. These data allowed us to quantify the template effect and to reach the conclusion that, in the presence of a guest having a coordinating lone pair, the formation of ternary metal-guest-CB complexes must be taken into account when discussing the complexation behaviour of cucurbituril derivatives in the presence of salts.     

The cooperative effect in ion-pair recognition by a ditopic hemicryptophane host

The heteroditopic hemicryptophane 1 , which bears a tripodal anion binding site and a cation recognition site in the molecular cavity, proved to be an efficient ion‐pair receptor. The hemicryptophane host binds anions selectively depending on shape and hydrogen‐bond‐accepting ability. It forms an inclusion complex with the Me₄N⁺ ion, which can simultaneously bind anionic species to provide anion@[ 1? Me₄N⁺] complexes. The increased affinity of [ 1? Me₄N⁺] for anionic species is attributed to a strong cooperative effect that arises from the properly positioned binding sites in the hemicryptophane cavity, thus allowing the formation of the contact ion pair. Density functional theory calculations were performed to analyze the Coulomb interactions of the ion pairs, which compete with the ion‐dipole ones, that originate in the ion–hemicryptophane contacts.     

Efficient transport of saccharides through a liquid membrane mediated by a cyclodextrin dimer

A new efficient system for transporting saccharides through a liquid membrane has been constructed. The transport rates of saccharides were accelerated greatly by the cyclodextrin dimer 2; by contrast, the corresponding cyclodextrin monomer 1 was not effective at mediating saccharide transport. The transport rate of D-ribose through a chloroform liquid membrane was 17 times faster when the cyclodextrin dimer 2 was used as the transporter than when the cyclodextrin monomer 1 was used. Similarly the transport rate of methyl D-galactopyranoside was 16 times faster by 2 than by 1.