ABSTRACT
The lipophilic guanosine derivative 1 acts as a self-assembled ionophore and, in the presence of alkali metal ions, forms chiral polymeric structures in organic solvents. These polymeric columnar aggregates are comprised of G-quartets held together by alkali metal ions which are located inside the tubular structure; the quartets are surrounded by hydrocarbon chains. In hydrocarbon solvents, these columnar aggregates form lyomesophases of the cholesteric and hexagonal type. Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
ABSTRACT
The self-assembly of lipophilic deoxyguanosine derivatives 1 and 2 has been studied in solution by NMR spectroscopy and ESI-MS (electrospray ionization mass spectrometry). NMR data show the existence of two types of self-assembled, ribbonlike structures (A and B), which are connected at the guanine moieties through two different H-bonded networks. The first species (A), which is stable in the solid state and characterised by cyclic NH(2)-O(6) and NH(1)-N(7) hydrogen bonds, is detected soon after dissolving the polycrystalline powder in rigorously anhydrous CDCl3. In solution it slowly undergoes a structural transition towards a thermodynamically stable ribbon characterised by NH(1)-O(6) and NH(2)-N(3) cyclic hydrogen bonds (B). On the other hand, at surfaces, self-assembled ribbon nanostructures have been grown from solutions of derivative 1 both on mica and at the graphite-solution interface. They have been investigated by means of tapping mode scanning force microscopy (SFM) and scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), respectively. SFM revealed dry, micrometer-long nanoribbons with a molecular cross-section. while STM imaging at submolecular resolution indicates a molecular packing of type A, like the one detected in the solid state. This indicates that, upon adsorption at the solid-liquid interface, the guanosine moieties undergo a structural rearrangement from a B-type to an A-type ribbon.
ABSTRACT
The twisting ability of a series of 1,1'-binaphthalene compounds used as dopants in nematic solvents has been related to the dihedral angle theta between the two naphthalene moieties. While in the case of the more flexible compounds the sign and value of the helical twisting power is affected by several structural features that prevent a simple assignment of the conformation, in the presence of a covalent bridge that restricts the rotation around the C(1)-C(1') bond a reliable estimate of the conformational helicity could be obtained. This technique is complementary to CD spectroscopy that, for the investigated molecules, presents the same exciton patterns irrespective of the actual theta value.
ABSTRACT
The transfer of potassium salts of dinitrophenyl amino acids from water to chloroform by the lipophilic guanosine derivative 1 takes place enantioselectively. Depending on the K(+):1 ratio, G-quartets of 1 self-assemble into octamers (O) or polymers.
