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Chirality in Nature

Chirality in Nature

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.

Prochirality

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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...

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Molecules that possess multiple chiral centers can afford a large number of stereoisomers. For instance, while some molecules like 2-butanol have one chiral center, defined as a tetrahedral carbon atom with four different substituents attached, several molecules like butane-2,3-diol have multiple chiral centers. A simple formula to predict the number of stereoisomers possible for a molecule with n chiral centers is 2n. However, there can be a lower number where some of the stereoisomers are...

Regioselectivity and Stereochemistry of Acid-Catalyzed Hydration

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The rate of acid-catalyzed hydration of alkenes depends on the alkene's structure, as the presence of alkyl substituents at the double bond can significantly influence the rate.

Reduction of Alkenes: Asymmetric Catalytic Hydrogenation

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The metal catalyst used can be either heterogeneous or homogeneous. When hydrogenation of an alkene generates a chiral center, a pair of enantiomeric products is expected to form. However, an enantiomeric excess of one of the products can be facilitated using an enantioselective reaction or an...

Chirality

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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.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 18, 2026

Light-driven Molecular Motors on Surfaces for Single Molecular Imaging

Light-driven Molecular Motors on Surfaces for Single Molecular Imaging

Published on: March 13, 2019

Chiral catalysis-driven rotary molecular motors.

Hua-Kui Liu¹, Benjamin M W Roberts^1,2, Stefan Borsley^1,3

¹Department of Chemistry, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.

Nature Chemistry

|January 16, 2026

Summary

Researchers developed novel chiral molecular motors that use their own structural asymmetry for directional rotation, mimicking motor proteins. This breakthrough advances understanding of chemical energy transduction in biological processes.

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Last Updated: Jan 18, 2026

Light-driven Molecular Motors on Surfaces for Single Molecular Imaging

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Published on: March 13, 2019

Assembling Molecular Shuttles Powered by Reversibly Attached Kinesins

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Published on: October 15, 2019

Area of Science:

Molecular Chemistry
Supramolecular Chemistry
Chemical Engineering

Background:

Distinguishing rotational direction in molecular motors typically requires external chiral systems or enzymes.
Structural anisotropy is crucial for directional rotary motion around covalent single bonds.

Purpose of the Study:

To report a new class of rotary motors where intrinsic structural asymmetry drives directional rotary catalysis.
To investigate the role of a single stereogenic center in achieving directional bias in molecular motors.

Main Methods:

Synthesis of azaindole-phenylethanoic acid-based rotary motors.
Catalysis of diisopropylcarbodiimide hydration using the developed molecular motors.
Modulation of motor directionality using chiral hydrolysis promoters.

Main Results:

A single stereogenic center in the motor produced an 8:1 clockwise:counterclockwise bias in diisopropylcarbodiimide hydration.
Chiral promoters significantly enhanced directionality (30:1 clockwise) or reversed it (1:2 clockwise:counterclockwise).
Demonstrated control over rotary catalysis directionality based on motor structure and chiral additives.

Conclusions:

Intrinsic structural asymmetry within molecular motors can effectively direct rotary catalysis.
This work provides insights into chemical energy transduction mechanisms, fundamental to biological processes.
The developed motors offer a platform for controlled chemical energy conversion at the molecular level.