A chiral BINOL-based supramolecular gel enabling sensitive enantioselective and chemoselective collapse toward histidine

Soft Matter. 2023 Jan 18;19(3):430-435. doi: 10.1039/d2sm01424f.

Abstract

A chiral small molecule gelator (R)-H3L based on 1,1'-bi-2,2'-naphthol (BINOL)-phosphoric acid was designed and prepared, which spontaneously forms a stable water-induced gel. The gelation mechanism was revealed by single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis and a number of spectroscopic methods. Addition of Cu2+ improved the gelation ability, and the resultant metal organic gel realized visual enantioselective and chemoselective recognition toward L-histidine from enantiomers of 19 amino acids via gel collapse. The gel showed a highly sensitive response to L-histidine, and as low as 0.01 equiv. of L-histidine relative to the critical gelation concentration of (R)-H3L-Cu caused the gel to collapse. This strategy of regulating the assembly behavior through the interaction of amino acids and metal ions not only provides a simple and direct way to distinguish enantiomers, but also provides insight into how metal ions regulate the organization of biological supramolecular systems.

MeSH terms

  • Amines
  • Amino Acids / chemistry
  • Histidine* / chemistry
  • Metals
  • Naphthols* / chemistry
  • Stereoisomerism

Substances

  • Histidine
  • BINOL, naphthol
  • 2-naphthol
  • Naphthols
  • Amino Acids
  • Amines
  • Metals