Directed Self-Assembly of Chiral. Optically Active Macrocyciic Tetranuclear Molecular Squares

摘要

Chiral macromoleeuies play an essential role in biology and chemistry and are key constituents of all living organisms. The structural elegance and complexity of proteins and nucleic acids evolved by nature have been intriguing subjects for numerous inxestigations for over a century. The design and study of various artificial models of complex biological systems have largely been developed in the last three decades and now represent one of the major frontiers of modern supramolecular chemistry. Amongthe many systems investigated, the most intriguing are the chiral maerocycles: crown ethers, csclophanes, cyclodexinns, and calixarenes. Molecular recognition studies in these model systems provide insights into not only fundamental concepts of noncovalent interactions, occlusion phenomena, and chiral recognition, but also into enzymatic processes. The exact molecular architecture of these compounds, as manifested in their precise shape, size, conformation, and configuration, is critical to their function.