A color version of the Hinsberg test: permethylated cyclodextrin and crown-appended azophenol for highly selective sensing of amines

Azophenol dyes 1-5 having the permethylated cyclodextrin and/or crown moieties have been synthesized. Compounds 1 and 2 provide critical information for discrimination among 1°-3° amines by unique color changes. Addition of 1° and 2° amines to solutions of 1 or 2 in chloroform shifts the absorbance maximum of the initial solutions from 380 nm to ∼580 nm and ∼530 nm, respectively, but no change is observed with 3° amines. The high selectivity of 1 is mainly due to H-bonding between the ammonium H atoms of the amine and oxygen atoms of the crown-6. The selectivity of 1 possessing the β-cyclodextrin moiety toward amines was higher than that of 2 possessing the α-cyclodextrin moiety. On the other hand, chloroform solutions of 3 or 4, which lack the crown ether moiety, changed from yellow (380 nm) to pink (500 nm) with the addition of 1° and 2° amines, but with no selectivity. These results indicate that the crown unit in 1 or 2 plays an important role in discriminating among the types of amines.     

Self-assembly of amphiphiles with terthiophene and tripeptide segments into helical nanostructures

We previously reported a class of tripeptide amphiphiles known as peptide lipids that self-assemble into one-dimensional nanostructures with superhelical twisting. The pitch of this supramolecular twisting is controlled directly through sterics in the molecular structure of hydrophobic segments. In this work we study the supramolecular behavior of these nanoscale helices by substituting with a terthiophene conjugated segment of potential electronic interest and also through variations in the stereochemistry of the tripeptide. This terthiophene peptide lipid was shown to self-assemble into one-dimensional helical nanofibers with a regular diameter of 9±1 nm and helical pitch of 65±6 nm, and also found to form hierarchical double- and triple-stranded helices, which could be associated with terthiophene J-aggregate interactions among fibers. For stereochemical effects, we compared four diastereomers in the tripeptide sequence using l-glutamic acid and l- and d-alanine residues to probe their ability to control supramolecular organization. Interestingly, we found by atomic force microscopy that the LLD diastereomers formed cylindrical nanofibers without any twisting, whereas LDD diastereomeric segments self-assembled into helical nanofibers with a pitch of 40±6 nm. LDL diastereomeric segments formed, on the other hand, aggregates without any regular shape. We propose that these profound effects of chirality with amino acid sequence are related to changes in the β-sheet sub-structure within the nanofibers.     

Clockwise helical stacking of triphenylbenzene-based organogelator induced by peripheral chirality

We report on the synthesis and self-assembly of a new discotic organogelator based on π-conjugated triphenylbenzene with three peripheral chiral substituents. It is found that the introduction of chiral groups to the C₃-symmetric molecule led to a hexagonal columnar chiral stacking of the molecules in a clockwise direction in the organogel fibers. And the fluorescent emission of the gel decreased significantly compared to the monomer state at the same concentration, as a result of the aggregation of the nonplanar triphenylbenzene core in the gel phase.     

Double versus single helical structures of oligopyridine-dicarboxamide strands. Part 1: Effect of oligomer length

Oligoamides of 2,6-diaminopyridine and 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid were previously shown to fold into single helical monomers and to hybridize into double helical dimers. A new series of these oligomers comprising 5 to 15 pyridine units, 4-decyloxy residues, and benzylcarbamate end groups were synthesized using a new convergent scheme that involves an early disymmetrization of the diamine and of the diacid. The hybridization of these compounds into double helices was studied by ¹H NMR spectroscopy in chloroform solutions at various temperatures. Somewhat unexpectedly, these studies revealed that dimerization increases with oligomer length up to a certain point, and then decreases down to undetectable levels for the longest strands. NMR studies show that both double helices and single helices become more stable when strand length increases. The measured values of enthalpy and entropy of hybridization for oligomers of various length show that the enthalpic gain constantly decreases with strand length. This can be interpreted as being the result of an increasing enthalpic price of the spring-like extension that the strand undergoes upon hybridization as its length increases. On the other hand, the entropic loss of hybridization also constantly decreases with strand length. Presumably, the helical preorganization of the monomers increases with strand length, which allows the longer strands to hybridize with a minimal loss of motional freedom, that is to say at a low entropic price. The competiton between these two factors results in a maximum of hybridization for the strands having an intermediate length.     

Self-assembly of different single-chain bolaphospholipids and their miscibility with phospholipids or classical amphiphiles

A variety of bolalipids with a single long alkyl chain and two identical headgroups self-assemble in aqueous solutions into helical entangled nanofibers leading to the formation of a hydrogel. An increase in temperature usually leads to the break-up of the fiber structure into micellar aggregates. In this paper the question is addressed whether bolalipids of different lengths or different headgroup structures can form mixed fibers. Also, the stability of the fiber aggregation of bolalipids in mixtures with phospholipids forming lamellar bilayers is discussed. Here, the question whether single-chain bolalipids can be incorporated into phospholipid bilayers to stabilize bilayer membranes is important, as possibly lipid vesicles used for drug delivery can be improved. Finally, the stability of the fiber aggregate against solubilisation by common surfactants was studied. The paper addresses the question which type of aggregate structure dominates the self-assembly of bipolar and monopolar amphiphiles in aqueous suspension.     

磺化双酞菁钴自组装膜结构的表面增强拉曼光谱

采用自组装的方法构建了双核磺化酞菁钴轴向配位有序排列的膜层结构. 结合双核磺化酞菁钴分子体系自身所具有的性质及其和桥联分子四巯基吡啶之间相互作用的信息, 对其自组装膜的表面增强拉曼光谱进行了分析, 探讨了其自组装行为, 合理地解释了本自组装体系的膜层结构. 研究结果表明, 双核磺化酞菁钴分子(Bi-CoPc)在这种自组装膜中是以与基底平面存在一定夹角的倾斜的方式排列的.     

Tartradiamide formation by thermolysis of tartaric acid with alkylamines

The formation of N,N′-dialkyltartramides by microwave-assisted reactions and by conventional thermolysis was investigated. Thus, the thermolysis of l-tartaric acid with n-hexylamine at 200 °C showed that all the possible stereoisomers of N,N′-dihexyltartramide were formed albeit with partial racemization only. The same was observed for the microwave-assisted reaction.     

A novel dinuclear double-stranded helical complexes of bis(terdentate) N4O2 donor ligand with silver(I) and zinc(II) d metal ions

Reaction of the hexadentate N₄O₂-donor ligand 6,6′-bis(3-hydrazonobutan-2-one)-2,2′-bipyridine (L) with Ag^(I) and Zn^(II) affords a dinuclear double stranded helicate species [Ag₂L₂]²⁺ (1a) and [Zn₂L₂]²⁺ (1b), in which partitioning of the ligand into two bis-tridentate pyridyl-ketoimine chelating units allow each ligand to bridge both metal centres. X-ray crystallography, ESI-MS and UV–Vis spectrophotometric titration experiments reveal that the complex (1a) retains its solid-state structure in solution. The crystal structure of (1a) provides the first example of dinuclear silver(I) complex in which both of the metal centres can be approximated as a seven coordinate distorted mono-capped trigonal prism in which the Ag?Ag close contact of 3.034(4) Å is taken into account and forms the cap. The counter-ions do not interact with metal centres but hydrogen bond to N–H protons of the hydrazonic arms from the separate strands. The adjacent helical units are cross-linked together via NH?O_keto hydrogen bonding to maintain the supramolecular structure.     

Hydrothermal synthesis of two copper helical coordination polymers with acentric three-dimensional framework constructing from mixed pyridine carboxylates

Two copper helical coordination polymers, [Cu(2-pc)(3-pc)]_n1 and [Cu(2-pc)(4-pc)]_n2 (2-pc=2-pyridine carboxylate, 3-pc=3-pyridine carboxylate, 4-pc=4-pyridine carboxylate) have been hydrothermally synthesized directly from pyridine carboxylic acids and copper nitrate. The crystal structure were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction with the following data: compound 1, orthorhombic, P2₁2₁2₁, a=6.591(3) Å, b=8.692(5) Å, c=20.548(9) Å, V=1177.2(9) Å³, Z=4; compound 2, orthorhombic, Pna2₁, a=21.160(10) Å, b=9.095(5) Å, c=6.401(3) Å, V=1231.9(11) Å³, Z=4. The acentric three-dimensional (3D) framework of 1 is constructed from right-handed helical Cu(2-pc) chains and left-handed Cu(3-pc) helices. As for 2, Cu(2-pc) helical chains, in which left- and right-handed helices are coexisting, and Cu(4-pc) zigzag chains combined together to form acentric 3D architecture of 2 as well. Additionally, besides general spectral characterization, we first introduce generalized 2D correlation spectroscopy to explore the coordination polymers and ascertain the stretching vibration location of carboxylate groups of compounds 1 and 2.     

Syntheses,structures, and fluorescent properties of two helical complexes based on a long rigid N-heterocyclic ligand

A long N-heterocyclic ligand, 2,6-bis(3-(pyrid-3-yl)-1,2,4-triazolyl)pyridine (H₂bptp), and Zn(II)/Pb(II) yield {[Zn(bptp)(H₂O)]?·?2H₂O·CH₃CN} _n (1) and {[Pb(bptp)]?·?H₂O} _n (2). Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that 1 and 2 possess 2-D networks containing alternating left- and right-handed helical motifs. Topologically, 1 features a (4,4) topology, while 2 exhibits a (6,3) topology. The bptp^2? in 1 and 2 adopts syn-anti and syn-syn conformations, respectively. The results indicate that the long rigid N-heterocyclic ligand can adopt different conformations to coordinate with metals, beneficial to construction of helical structures with diverse topologies. The difference between the photoluminescence properties of the two complexes reveals that metal ions and coordination environment have significant influences on photoluminescence behavior.     

Synthesis, structure, and magnetic properties of two 1-D helical coordination polymeric Cu(II) complexes

Two helical coordination polymeric copper(II) complexes bearing amino acid Schiff bases HL or HL′, which are condensed from 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehyde with 2-aminobenzoic acid or l-valine, respectively, have been prepared and characterised by X-ray crystallography. In [CuL]_n (1) the copper(II) atoms are bridged by syn-anti carboxylate groups giving infinite 1-D right-handed helical chains which are further connected by weak C-H?Cu interactions to build a 2-D network. While in [CuL′]_n (2) the carboxylate group acts as a rare monatomic bridge to connect the adjacent copper(II) atoms leading to the formation of a left-handed helical chain. Magnetic susceptibility measurements indicate that 1 exhibits weak ferromagnetic interactions whereas an antiferromagnetic coupling is established for 2. The magnetic behavior can be satisfactorily explained on the basis of the structural data.     

Synthesis of helical [2.2]paracyclophanes containing carbocyclic and heterocyclic five-membered rings

The preparation of a [2.2]indenoparacyclophane-based diene is described. Diels-Alder cycloadditions of this diene with N-methylmaleimide, N-phenylmaleimide and maleic anhydride occurred in good yields and anti-diastereoselectively only under high pressure conditions. Heterohelicenophanes were prepared by dehydrogenation of the Diels-Alder products with 10% Pd/C catalyst. A new helicenophanequinone was obtained by the reaction between the diene and 1,4-naphthoquinone.     

Micelle formation induced by photo-Claisen rearrangement of poly(4-allyloxystyrene)-block-polystyrene

A novel micelle formation induced by the photo-Claisen rearrangement was attained using a poly(4-allyloxystyrene)-block-polystyrene (PASt-b-PSt) diblock copolymer. The photoreaction was performed in cyclohexane at room temperature without a catalyst. The conversion of the 4-allyloxystyrene units reached 90% by irradiation for 24 h. The photo-Claisen rearrangement of PASt-b-PSt into poly(3-allyl-4-hydroxystyrene)-block-PSt quantitatively proceeded up to a 20% conversion; however, the elimination of the allyl groups competitively occurred over the 20% conversion. The degrees of the photorearrangement and elimination showed good agreement in their material balance throughout the course of the reaction. Both of the photorearrangement and elimination finally reached ca. 50% degrees over 60% conversion. The light-scattering studies demonstrated that the PASt-b-PSt copolymer with a 36-nm hydrodynamic diameter as unimers formed micelles with a 98-nm diameter by irradiation.     

Design and interfacial behavior of two series of gemini amphiphiles with different charge positions based on imidazole moiety

Two series of gemini amphiphiles based on 2-heptadecylimidazole were designed. One is exo-BisImC17Cn (n=2, 4, 6, 8, 10), in which the positive charges are positioned on the outsides of the headgroups. The other is endo-BisImC17Cn (n = 2, 4, 6, 8, 10), whose positive charges are localized on the insides of the headgroups. The interfacial behavior at the air/water interface of these gemini amphiphiles was investigated in relation to the effect of the charge position and the spacer length. Monolayers of exo-BisImC17Cn show small differences in interfacial behavior when spread on water and aqueous Na2SO4 subphases. In contrast, significant distinctions were observed for molecules of endo-BisImC17Cn. The limiting areas of endo-BisImC17Cn monolayers on water are obviously larger than those on the aqueous Na2SO4 solution. While the limiting areas of the exo-BisImC17Cn monolayers increased monotonically with the spacer length, those of the endo-BisImC17C10 monolayer on Na2SO4 solution is obviously smaller than those of endo-BisImC17C6 and endo-BisImC17C8 monolayers, suggesting the wicket conformation of the alkyl chain in endo-BisImC17C10. On the other hand, both of the gemini amphiphiles could form complex monolayers with negatively charged TPPS at the air/water interface. The transferred complex multilayer films of the gemini amphiphiles/TPPS showed supramolecular chirality, although both of the gemini amphiphiles and TPPS are achiral. The exciton couplet was observed for the endo-BisImC17Cn/TPPS films, while no couplet was detected for the exo-BisImC17Cn/TPPS films. A reasonable comparison between the two series of geminis in relation to the effect of charge positions and the spacer lengths on the interfacial behavior and the supramolecular chirality was performed.     

Homochiral helical wavelike (4,4) networks constructed by divalent metal ions and S-carboxymethyl-l-cysteine

The synthesis, X-ray characterization and second-harmonic generation of three new two-dimensional coordination polymers [CuL(H₂O)]_n (1), [ZnL(H₂O)]_n (2) and {[CdL(H₂O)]·2H₂O}_n (3) (L=S-carboxymethyl-l-cysteine) are reported, which exhibit wavelike (4,4) topology, and are assembled into three-dimensional networks by hydrogen-bonding interactions. The most intriguing feature in 1, 2 and 3 is the presence of two types of homo-chiral helices. They crystallize in the chiral space groups P2₁ or P2₁2₁2₁, and displays modest powder SHG efficiencies.     

Mirror image supramolecular helical tapes formed by the enantiomeric-depsipeptide derivatives of the amyloidogenic peptide amylin(20-29)

Factors that determine the chirality of supramolecular helical tapes formed by a backbone-modified amylin(20-29) depsipeptide and inverso-depsipeptide, were studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, circular dichroism and transmission electron microscopy. Although β-sheet propensity was absent in both peptides, it was found that the l-depsipeptide formed left-handed and the enantiomeric d-depsipeptide right-handed helical tapes. Moreover, the backbone-modified depsipeptides, showed a certain degree of cross-recognition between both enantiomers, which might have implications in designing amyloid formation inhibitors.     

Supramolecular helical architecture from the self-assemblies of 2-chloro-5-nitro-benzoic acid and organic bases

Assembly of 2-chloro-5-nitro-benzoic acid (CNB) and organic bases containing nitrogen atom, 8-hydroxyquinaldine (purum), 1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)ethane (BPE), and 2-aminobenzimidazole, resulted in novel adducts with helical architecture. We present here an unprecedented single-stranded helix (left-handed and right-handed helices) in adduct 1. The helices are formed via three kinds of hydrogen bonding, O5–H5O1, C11–H11BO3, and C14–H14O1. But the two helices are linked by C9–H9O4 and C11–H11BO3 H-bonds. The interactions result in the cavity with dimensions of 8 × 10.5 Å, respectively. Interestingly, the different single-stranded helical structure in adduct 2 is generated via Cl1O1 interactions, where BPE linking the two helices by C9–H9O1 and O3–H3N2 H-bonds. The ring motifs and novel helical structures observed in the crystal packing suggest for further scopes in exploiting different substituent chloro-nitro-benzoic acid in a predictive manner or capturing useful nanoscale entities for self-assembly.     

Thermo-reversibility of the fluorescence enhancement of acridine orange induced by supramolecular self-assembly

Fluorescence enhancement of acridine orange (AO) in supramolecular hydrogels formed by self-assembly of the gelators 3-{[(2R)-2-(octadecylamino)-3-phenylpropanoyl]amino}butyrate (TC₁₈PheBu) and 1,3:2,4-di-O-benzylidene-d-sorbitol (DBS) was investigated by steady-state and varying temperature fluorescence, polarized fluorescence and time-resolved fluorescence techniques. The results showed that the fluorescence intensities of AO in the gels remarkably increased in comparison with AO aqueous solutions, and increased with an increase of the gelator concentrations. The varying temperature fluorescence analysis indicated that fluorescence intensities of AO in the gels decreased upon an increase of temperature, and vice versa. This can be attributed to aggregation and dissociation of the gelators in the systems, since the fluorescence enhancement of AO was induced by self-assembly of the gelators. Polarized fluorescence analysis indicated that the values of anisotropy (r) of AO are significantly higher than that in water. This further confirmed that the three-dimensional network formed by the gelator aggregates constrained the rotation of AO entrapped within the gels, resulting in high values of anisotropy. Time-resolved fluorescence analysis indicated that the rates of fluorescence decay in the gels are lower than that in water. These results reveal thermo-reversibility of the fluorescence enhancement of AO in supramolecular hydrogels.     

Preparation and the mechanisms of formation of silver particles of different morphologies in homogeneous solutions

Uniform, well-dispersed silver particles of various morphologies have been prepared by reducing highly acidic silver nitrate solutions with ascorbic acid in the presence of a sodium naphthalene sulfonate-formaldehyde copolymer as dispersing agent. By varying the temperature of the reaction, the free acid content, the addition rate of the reductant, and the aging time, both isometric and anisotropic silver particles could be obtained. It was found that the latter were formed by aggregation of nanosize subunits, which were identified by electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry.