Supercoiling as a Physical Process Providing Formation of Macroscopic Anisometric Supramolecular Structures

Bull Exp Biol Med. 2015 Sep;159(5):607-9. doi: 10.1007/s10517-015-3025-3. Epub 2015 Oct 13.

Abstract

Solutions of chiral and achiral trifluoroacetyl amino alcohols (TFAAA) contain anisometric structures with a diameter <1 nm and length ~7 nm. In homochiral solutions and xerogels, chiral TFAAA form strings with a diameter of ~30-100 nm and length more than ~1 μ, and achiral TFAAA condensate into isometric granule with diameter of ~1 μ. We conclude that molecular chirality determines helicity of strings within tens of nanometers or more. Stabilization of supramolecular structure of strings is presumably achieved via their supercoiling.

Keywords: chirality; helicoidal Strings; spiral strings; supercoiling; supramolecular constructions.

MeSH terms

  • Amino Alcohols / chemistry*
  • Cyclohexanes / chemistry
  • Fluoroacetates / chemistry*
  • Gels
  • Heptanes / chemistry
  • Molecular Conformation
  • Scattering, Small Angle
  • Solutions
  • Stereoisomerism
  • X-Ray Diffraction

Substances

  • Amino Alcohols
  • Cyclohexanes
  • Fluoroacetates
  • Gels
  • Heptanes
  • Solutions
  • Cyclohexane