Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Chirality in Nature02:30

Chirality in Nature

13.5K
Chirality is the most intriguing yet essential facet of nature, governing life’s biochemical processes and precision. It can be observed from a snail shell pattern in a macroscopic world to an amino acid, the minutest building block of life. Most of the snails around the world have right-coiled shells because of the intrinsic chirality in their genes. All the amino acids present in the human body exist in an enantiomerically pure state, except for glycine - the sole achiral amino acid.
13.5K
Chirality02:25

Chirality

24.4K
Chirality is a term that describes the lack of mirror symmetry in an object. In other words, chiral objects cannot be superposed on their mirror images. For example, our feet are chiral, as the mirror image of the left foot, the right foot, cannot be superposed on the left foot.
Chiral objects exhibit a sense of handedness when they interact with another chiral object. For example, our left foot can only fit in the left shoe and not in the right shoe. Achiral objects — objects that have...
24.4K
Prochirality02:05

Prochirality

3.8K
The concept of prochirality leads to the nomenclature of the individual faces of a molecule and plays a crucial role in the enantioselective reaction. It is a concept where two or more achiral molecules react to produce chiral products. A typical process is the reaction of an achiral ketone to generate a chiral alcohol. Here, the achiral reactant reacts with an achiral reducing agent, sodium borohydride, to generate an equimolar mixture of the chiral enantiomers of the product. For example, an...
3.8K
Chirality at Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur02:30

Chirality at Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur

5.8K
Chirality is most prevalent in carbon-based tetrahedral compounds, but this important facet of molecular symmetry extends to sp3-hybridized nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur centers, including trivalent molecules with lone pairs. Here, the lone pair behaves as a functional group in addition to the other three substituents to form an analogous tetrahedral center that can be chiral.
A consequence of chirality is the need for enantiomeric resolution. While this is theoretically possible for all...
5.8K
Properties of Enantiomers and Optical Activity02:24

Properties of Enantiomers and Optical Activity

17.2K
It is essential to understand the difference between chiral and achiral interactions and the implications thereof in optical activity and their applications. Just as our feet, which are chiral, interact uniquely with chiral objects, such as a pair of shoes, but identically with achiral socks, enantiomers of a molecule exhibit different properties only when they interact with other chiral media. An example of a significant implication from this facet is the phenomenon known as optical activity,...
17.2K
Racemic Mixtures and the Resolution of Enantiomers02:30

Racemic Mixtures and the Resolution of Enantiomers

18.5K
A racemic mixture, or racemate, is an equimolar mixture of enantiomers of a molecule that can be separated using their unique interaction with chiral molecules or media. Racemic mixtures are denoted by the (±)- prefix. This ‘optical rotation descriptor’ applies to the whole solution of a racemic mixture rather than a specific stereoisomer. Enantiomers typically have the same physical and chemical properties. Hence, they are not easily separable. However, enantiomers can exhibit...
18.5K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Highly Stable Porphyrin-Confined Iridium Clusters Modified with Sodium Carboxymethyl Cellulose for Promoting Chiral Recognition.

Analytical chemistry·2026
Same author

Morphological Chiral Engineering Strategies of Metal Organic Frameworks Driven for Enhanced Enantioselective Recognition.

Analytical chemistry·2026
Same author

Polyoxometalate-Based Chiral MOF Featuring Superior Enantioselective Electrocatalytic Oxidation Performance.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2025
Same author

Artificial Protective Interfacial Layer Functionalized by In Situ Constructed Hydrophobic Polyphosphonitrile-Containing Polymer for Dendrite-Free Zinc Metal Anodes.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2025
Same author

Tuning Enantioselective Recognition and Synergistic Catalytic Activity by the Heterojunction of a Chiral Polysaccharide Hydrogel Interface Electric Field.

ACS nano·2025
Same author

Enantioselective Recognition Driven Photocatalytic Degradation of d-Tryptophan Enantiomers Based on l-Cysteine-Modified β-Cyclodextrin.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 29, 2025

An Electrochemical Cholesteric Liquid Crystalline Device for Quick and Low-Voltage Color Modulation
10:33

An Electrochemical Cholesteric Liquid Crystalline Device for Quick and Low-Voltage Color Modulation

Published on: February 27, 2019

8.5K

Chiral Materials: Progress, Applications, and Prospects.

Xiaohui Niu1, Rui Zhao1, Simeng Yan1

  • 1College of Petrochemical Technology, Lanzhou University of Technology, Lanzhou, 730050, P. R. China.

Small (Weinheim an Der Bergstrasse, Germany)
|May 22, 2023
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Chirality, the property of non-superimposable mirror images, is fundamental to life. This study explores chiral materials derived from natural sources and designed molecules for applications leveraging stereoselectivity in biological interactions.

Keywords:
applicationchiral materialsconstructionoutlookprogress

More Related Videos

A Micropatterning Assay for Measuring Cell Chirality
08:07

A Micropatterning Assay for Measuring Cell Chirality

Published on: March 11, 2022

2.4K
Development of Heterogeneous Enantioselective Catalysts using Chiral Metal-Organic Frameworks MOFs
08:25

Development of Heterogeneous Enantioselective Catalysts using Chiral Metal-Organic Frameworks MOFs

Published on: January 17, 2020

7.3K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 29, 2025

An Electrochemical Cholesteric Liquid Crystalline Device for Quick and Low-Voltage Color Modulation
10:33

An Electrochemical Cholesteric Liquid Crystalline Device for Quick and Low-Voltage Color Modulation

Published on: February 27, 2019

8.5K
A Micropatterning Assay for Measuring Cell Chirality
08:07

A Micropatterning Assay for Measuring Cell Chirality

Published on: March 11, 2022

2.4K
Development of Heterogeneous Enantioselective Catalysts using Chiral Metal-Organic Frameworks MOFs
08:25

Development of Heterogeneous Enantioselective Catalysts using Chiral Metal-Organic Frameworks MOFs

Published on: January 17, 2020

7.3K

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Materials Science

Background:

  • Chirality is a fundamental property of molecules and biological systems, essential for life's processes.
  • Living organisms are built from homochiral components like L-amino acids and D-sugars.
  • Chiral interactions influence biological functions, affecting pharmacodynamics and pathology due to stereoselectivity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review recent advancements in constructing chiral materials.
  • To explore applications of these chiral materials.
  • To highlight the use of natural and designed chiral sources.

Main Methods:

  • Summarizing investigations on chiral material construction.
  • Analyzing applications of chiral materials derived from natural small molecules.
  • Examining chiral materials from natural biomacromolecules and designed sources.

Main Results:

  • Chiral materials can be effectively constructed using various natural and synthetic chiral sources.
  • These materials demonstrate significant potential in applications requiring chiral recognition and stereoselective interactions.
  • The study highlights the versatility of chiral sources in material design.

Conclusions:

  • Chiral materials derived from natural and designed sources are crucial for understanding and manipulating chiral interactions.
  • Further research into these materials can lead to advancements in medicine and biotechnology.
  • The hierarchical homochiral nature of life underscores the importance of chiral chemistry.