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Published on: August 2, 2012
Supramolecular Aggregates of Dendritic Cyclophanes (Dendrophanes) Threaded on Molecular Rods with Steroid Termini
Benoît Kenda1, François Diederich1
1Laboratorium für Organische Chemie, ETH-Zentrum, Universitätstrasse 16, CH-8092 Zürich (Switzerland), Fax: (+41) 1-632-1109.
Abstract:
Multinanometer-sized assemblies with molecular weights exceeding 14 000 are obtained by the threading of two dendritic cyclophanes (dendrophanes) onto molecular rods in which two testosterone termini are attached by rigid spacers to a central phenyl ring bearing two quaternary ammonium side chains. The formation of these structurally defined aggregates, in which the dendrophanes preferentially encapsulate the steroid termini (see picture), is driven by a combination of apolar interactions, hydrophobic desolvation, and ion pairing, and depends strongly on the length of the spacer.
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