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Discover Romain's new publication in Dalton Transactions
Published on November 26, 2024
– Updated on November 26, 2024
Development of a water-soluble ouroboros-like calix[6]arene-trisimidazole-based ligand for enhanced binding of zinc. By Romain Carpentier, Roy Lavendomme, Benoit Colasson, Kristin Bartik & Ivan Jabin - First published: 19 November 2024
Development of a water-soluble ouroboros-like calix[6]arene-trisimidazole-based ligand for enhanced binding of zinc
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D4DT03158J
Abstract
Increasing the thermodynamic stability of metal complexes in water is a key challenge for various applications of coordination chemistry. In this study, a calix[6]arene macrocycle functionalized with three imidazole units on the narrow rim and three primary amino legs on the wide rim was synthesized and studied. This ligand coordinates a Zn2+ cation in water, within a pH window centered around 7, through the three imidazole units and one self-included amino leg occupying the coordination site within the macrocycle cavity. The coordination process benefits from a favourable entropic effect, conferring greater thermodynamic stability to the resulting ouroboros-like complex compared to the one stabilized by an exogenous amine. Additionally, the intramolecular coordination ensures a supramolecular protection, which can be exploited for the site-selective functionalization of two out of the three amino groups. These findings demonstrate that the use of macrocyclic ligands capable of forming ouroboros-like molecular complexes represent a valuable strategy for stabilizing metal ions in water.