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Updated: May 18, 2026

OaAEP1-Mediated Enzymatic Synthesis and Immobilization of Polymerized Protein for Single-Molecule Force Spectroscopy
Published on: February 5, 2020
Anion binding induced conformational changes exploited for recognition, sensing and pseudorotaxane disassembly.
Graeme T Spence1, Carmen Chan, Fridrich Szemes
1Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TA, UK.
New acyclic receptors change shape when binding anions, enabling fluorescence sensing and controlled disassembly of molecular assemblies. These findings advance anion recognition and supramolecular chemistry applications.
Area of Science:
- Supramolecular Chemistry
- Chemical Sensing
- Organic Synthesis
Background:
- Acyclic receptors offer tunable platforms for molecular recognition.
- Anion binding can induce significant conformational changes in receptor molecules.
- Developing selective and sensitive anion sensors remains a key challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize novel acyclic receptors for anion recognition.
- To investigate anion-induced conformational changes for sensing and supramolecular control.
- To explore fluorescence-based anion sensing mechanisms and pseudorotaxane disassembly.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of imidazolium-appended bis-amide-pyridine, pyridine N-oxide, and pyridinium receptors.
- Anion binding studies using proton nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H NMR) spectroscopy.
- Fluorescence spectroscopy to investigate sensing capabilities of pyrene-functionalized receptors.
- Analysis of pseudorotaxane assembly and disassembly dynamics.
Main Results:
- Receptors demonstrated significant conformational changes from 'open' to 'closed' states upon anion binding.
- A bis-pyrene functionalized receptor showed fluorescence-based anion sensing via excimer signaling.
- Chloride binding induced disassembly of a pyridine N-oxide/isophthalamide macrocycle pseudorotaxane assembly.
Conclusions:
- Acyclic receptors can effectively utilize anion-binding-induced conformational changes for recognition and sensing.
- The developed receptors show promise for applications in chemical sensing and supramolecular switch development.
- Conformational control in response to specific anions offers new avenues for molecular device design.
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