TY - JOUR A1 - Grunwald, M. A. A1 - Hagenlocher, S. E. A1 - Turkanovic, L. A1 - Bauch, S. M. A1 - Wachsmann, S. B. A1 - Altevogt, L. A. A1 - Ebert, M. A1 - Knöller, J. A. A1 - Raab, A. R. A1 - Schulz, F. A1 - Kolmangadi, Mohamed A. A1 - Zens, A. A1 - Huber, P. A1 - Schönhals, Andreas A1 - Bilitiewski, U. A1 - Laschat, S. T1 - Does thermotropic liquid crystalline self-assembly control biological activity in amphiphilic amino acids? – tyrosine ILCs as a case study N2 - Amphiphilic amino acids represent promising scaffolds for biologically active soft matter. In order to understand the bulk self-assembly of amphiphilic amino acids into thermotropic liquid crystalline phases and their biological properties a series of tyrosine ionic liquid crystals (ILCs) was synthesized, carrying a benzoate unit with 0–3 alkoxy chains at the tyrosine unit and a cationic guanidinium head group. Investigation of the mesomorphic properties by polarizing optical microscopy (POM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (WAXS, SAXS) revealed smectic A bilayers (SmAd) for ILCs with 4-alkoxy- and 3,4-dialkoxybenzoates, whereas ILCs with 3,4,5-trisalkoxybenzoates showed hexagonal columnar mesophases (Colh ), while different counterions had only a minor influence. Dielectric measurements revealed a slightly higher dipole moment of non-mesomorphic tyrosine-benzoates as compared to their mesomorphic counterparts. The absence of lipophilic side chains on the benzoate unit was important for the biological activity. Thus, non-mesomorphic tyrosine benzoates and crown ether benzoates devoid of additional side chains at the benzoate unit displayed the highest cytotoxicities (against L929 mouse fibroblast cell line) and antimicrobial activity (against Escherichia coli DTolC and Staphylococcus aureus) and promising selectivity ratio in favour of antimicrobial activity. KW - Liquid Crystals PY - 2023 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/d3cp00485f SN - 1463-9076 VL - 25 IS - 26 SP - 17639 EP - 17656 PB - RCS AN - OPUS4-57796 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Raab, A. R. A1 - Grießler, T. R. A1 - Rück, D. A1 - Li, Z. A1 - Zens, A. A1 - Bruckner, J. R. A1 - Huber, P. A1 - Schönhals, Andreas A1 - Szymoniak, Paulina A1 - Laschat, S. T1 - Salt complexation drives liquid crystalline selfassembly in crown ether–amino acid hybrids N2 - Crown ether–amino acid hybrids represent a promising class of amphiphilic molecules combining ion recognition with self-assembly capabilities. Despite extensive studies on their binding properties, the influence of inorganic salt complexation on their liquid crystalline behaviour remains underexplored. Here we synthesized amphiphilic [18]-crown-6 derivatives of L-dihydroxyphenylalanine and tetrahydroisoquinoline analogues, systematically investigating the effects of alkyl chain length and salt type on mesophase formation. Complexation with various salts induced liquid crystalline phases, transitioning from smectic A to columnar hexagonal structures as anion size and alkyl chain length increased. Structural analyses and electron density mapping revealed assembly into charged superdiscs forming columnar stacks with tunable ion channels. Broadband dielectric spectroscopy highlighted differences in molecular mobility and conductivity linked to molecular design. These findings establish salt complexation as a key strategy to control self-assembly and ion transport in crown ether–amino acid hybrids, advancing their potential in responsive soft materials and ion-conductive applications. KW - Ionic liquid crystals PY - 2026 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-655986 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/d5tc04129e SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) AN - OPUS4-65598 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -