Hierarchical Layer Engineering Using Supramolecular Double‐Comb Diblock Copolymers

The formation of unusual multilayered parallel lamellae‐in‐lamellae in symmetric supramolecular double‐comb diblock copolymers is presented. While keeping the concentration of surfactant fixed, the number of internal layers was found to increase with molecular weight M up to 34 for the largest block copolymer. The number of internal structures n was established to scale as M^0.67 and therefore enables easy design of such structures with great precision.     

Supramolecular Catalysis of the oxa-Pictet–Spengler Reaction with an Endohedrally Functionalized Self-Assembled Cage Complex

An endohedrally functionalized self-assembled Fe₄L₆ cage complex can catalyze oxa-Pictet—Spengler cyclizations of tryptophols and various aldehyde derivatives, showing strong rate accelerations and size-selectivity. Selective molecular recognition of substrates controls the reactivity, and the cage is capable of binding and activating multiple different species along the multistep reaction pathway. The combination of a functionalized active site, size-selective reactivity, and multistep activation, all from a single host molecule, illustrates the biomimetic nature of the catalysis.     

Chitooligosaccharide Copolymers: Synthesis and Aqueous Self-assembly

Novel water-soluble amphiphilic graft copolymers (COS-g-PCL-b-MPEG) were synthesized by the coupling reaction between chitooligosaccharide (COS) and MPEG-b-PCL-COOH, which was synthesized via ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone (CL) using MPEG as an initiator and subsequent carboxylation by succinic anhydride. The chemical composition of the graft copolymers was confirmed by ¹H-NMR spectra and FT-IR spectrometry. The thermal properties and crystallinity of the copolymers were observed by DSC and XRD measurements, which showed the existence of separate backbone and graft chain phases in the copolymer. The micellar behavior via self-assembly of the graft copolymers in aqueous solution was studied using pyrene fluorescence dye technique. AFM measurements showed that the micelles had a spherical morphology at the critical micelle concentration (CMC) and ranged in size from 20–45 nm. The amphiphilic ternary biodegradable graft copolymer endows the hydrophilic outer shell of micelles with structural and functional diversification, which might be desirable for drug delivery applications.     

Reversible Clustering of Gold Nanoparticles under Confinement

A limiting factor of solvent‐induced nanoparticle self‐assembly is the need for constant sample dilution in assembly/disassembly cycles. Changes in the nanoparticle concentration alter the kinetics of the subsequent assembly process, limiting optical signal recovery. Herein, we show that upon confining hydrophobic nanoparticles in permeable silica nanocapsules, the number of nanoparticles participating in cyclic aggregation remains constant despite bulk changes in solution, leading to highly reproducible plasmon band shifts at different solvent compositions.     

以苯为模块自组装合成碳纳米片

在300 ℃苯溶剂中, 以无水三氯化铝为催化剂, 以苯和六氯乙烷为碳源, 基于傅克烷基化反应生成三氯乙烯苯, 并以之为模块自组装合成了具有叠层结构的碳微米颗粒, 其层片厚度为300～500 nm. 进而在反应体系和反应条件不变的情况下, 通过引入铝粉颗粒作为基底成功地诱导出厚度为30～50 nm的碳纳米片. 实验结果表明, 所得碳材料由纳米石墨微晶和非晶碳组成. 文中探讨了叠层结构的台阶长大机制, 以及碳纳米片在铝粉表面的异质形核机制.     

Research Progress of Regulation of Driving Forces in Short Peptide Supramolecular Self-Assembly北大核心CSCD

Some short peptides can spontaneously self-assemble into various nanostructures via the synergistic driving forces of non-covalent interactions. These non-covalent interactions,including electrostatic interaction,hydrogen bonding,aromatic interactions and other non-covalent interactions,are usually highly coupled together. Through rational sequence design and proper modification of short peptide molecules,the driving forces could be regulated purposively,and the nanostructures and morphologies of the self-assemblies could be controlled accordingly,and thus so as to achieve the fabrication of peptide-based supramolecular biomaterials and develop their functions. In this paper,the effects of hydrogen bonding,π-π stacking, electrostatic interaction,hydrophobic interaction,metal ion coordination and chiral center on the self-assembly behavior of peptide self-assembly have been reviewed. The driving force regulation strategies, including sequence design,pH and concentration adjustment and metal ion coordination,and the resulted nanostructures have also been discussed. We also make the outlooks on the development of peptide-based supramolecular biomaterials with specific functions in biomedicines and biocatalysis. © 2022, Science Press (China). All rights reserved.     

Mixed Quantum Classical Reaction Rates based on the Phase Space Formulation of the Hierarchical Equations of Motion

In a previous work [J. Chem. Phys. 140 , 174105 (2014)], we have shown that a mixed quantum classical (MQC) rate theory can be derived to investigate the quantum tunneling effects in the proton transfer reactions. However, the method is based on the high temperature approximation of the hierarchical equation of motion (HEOM) with the Debye-Drude spectral density, and results in a multi-state Zusman type of equation. We now extend this theory to include quantum effects of the bath degrees of freedom. By writing the full HEOM into a multidimensional partial differential equation in phase space, we can define a new reaction coordinate, and the previous method can be generalized to the full quantum regime. The validity of the new method is demonstrated by using numerical examples, including the spin-Boson model, and the double well model for proton transfer reaction. The new method is found to resolve some key problems of the previous theory based on high temperature approximation, including possible numerical instability in long time simulation and wrong rate constant at low temperatures.     

三唑环修饰的苯并菲二羧酸酯和酰亚胺: 合成、液晶及凝胶性

在盘状液晶分子外围柔性链中引入功能不同的基团, 是设计和合成具有良好液晶性能化合物的常用策略. 本工作从苯并菲2,3-二甲酸和酸酐出发, 通过亲核取代和点击反应, 分别合成了两类三唑环修饰的苯并菲二羧酸酯和苯并菲酰亚胺化合物. 热重分析仪(TGA)测试表明, 新制备的主要中间产物与目标化合物失重为5%时的温度在274~389 ℃之间, 均表现出良好的热稳定性. 我们通过差示扫描量热法(DSC)、偏光显微镜(POM)和变温X射线衍射(XRD)实验对这些化合物的热力学行为和介晶性进行了研究. 除三唑环修饰的酯3a和3b无液晶性外, 主要中间产物(2和5)与三唑环修饰的酰亚胺产物(6a和6b)均有一个六方柱状液晶相. 此外, 制备的以三唑为桥联基团的酰亚胺二聚体10为室温液晶, 具有173 ℃的液晶范围. XRD证实了该二聚体中存在有序度不同的两种柱状液晶相(Col_h1和Col_h2). 另外, 由于三唑环的引入, 三唑环修饰的酯类和酰亚胺两类化合物在某些有机溶剂中都能形成有机凝胶. 其中, 二聚体10在1,2-二氯乙烷和1,4-二氧六环中表现出优异的凝胶能力, 其临界凝胶浓度(CGC)可低至1 mg/mL. 相比之下, 不含三唑环的中间产物2和5则不能形成凝胶, 表明三唑环之间的偶极-偶极作用和液晶刚性核π-π堆积的协同作用对于超分子凝胶的形成起着重要的作用. 因此, 同时表现出液晶和凝胶性质的三唑环修饰的苯并菲2,3-二酰亚胺分子具有成为一种多功能材料的潜在应用价值.     

微生物发酵诱导多孔材料:制备方法和应用

微生物发酵作为一种新的制备多孔材料的方式, 将微生物发酵工程与发泡工程有机结合起来, 克服了传统制备方法需要特殊设备、 操作复杂、 后处理繁琐、 化学药品污染和成本昂贵等缺点, 受到了广泛关注.本文基于微生物发酵多孔材料的研究, 围绕多孔材料的定义和多孔水凝胶的分类及制备方式进行总结.针对微生物发酵诱导制备多孔材料的制备方法, 综合评述了该方法在染料吸附、 海水蒸发脱盐、 电磁屏蔽以及制备新型功能性生物材料等方面的应用.最后, 对微生物诱导制备多孔材料的未来发展进行了展望.     

Fibril Structure Demonstrates the Role of Iodine Labelling on a Pentapeptide Self-Assembly

Iodination has long been employed as a successful labelling strategy to gain structural insights into proteins and other biomolecules via several techniques, including Small Angle X-ray Scattering, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS), and single-crystal crystallography. However, when dealing with smaller biomolecular systems, interactions driven by iodine may significantly alter their self-assembly behaviour. The engineering of amyloidogenic peptides for the development of ordered nanomaterials has greatly benefitted from this possibility. Still, to date, iodination has exclusively been applied to aromatic residues. In this work, an aliphatic bis-iodinated amino acid was synthesized and included into a custom pentapeptide, which showed enhanced fibrillogenic behaviour. Peptide single crystal X-ray structure and powder X-ray diffraction on its dried water solution demonstrated the key role of iodine atoms in promoting intermolecular interactions that drive the peptide self-assembly into amyloid fibrils. These findings enlarge the library of halogenated moieties available for directing and engineering the self-assembly of amyloidogenic peptides.