A strategy for the rational design of a new optical sensor material for the selective recognition of long-chain carboxylates in water is presented. The approach relies on the combination of structure-property relationships to single out the optimal molecular sensor unit and the tuning of the sensing characteristics of an inorganic support material. A spacer-substituted 7-urea-phenoxazin-3-one was employed as the signaling moiety and a mesoporous trimethylsilylated UVM-7 (MCM-41 type) material served as the solid support. The sensor material shows the advantageous features of both modules that is absorption and emission in the visible spectral range, a fluorescence red-shift and enhancement upon analyte coordination, and the amplification of noncovalent (binding) and hydrogen-bonding (recognition) interactions in the detection event. Besides these basic results that are related to the design and performance of the sensor material, the paper discusses general aspects of amido-substituted phenoxazinone photophysics and addresses some general features of molecular anion recognition chemistry in aqueous vs nonaqueous media, utilizing steady-state and time-resolved optical as well as NMR spectroscopies. Detailed studies on potentially competing biochemical species and a first access to the schematic model of the response of the sensor material as obtained by a combination of fluorescence lifetime distribution analysis and Langmuir-type fitting of the gross binding constants complement the key issues of the paper.
Design strategies for (bio)chemical systems that are inspired by nature's accomplishments in system design and operation on various levels of complexity are increasingly gaining in importance. Within the broad field of biomimetic chemistry, this article highlights various attempts toward improved and sophisticated sensory materials that rely on the combination of supramolecular (bio)chemical recognition principles and nanoscopic solid structures. Examples range from more established concepts such as hybrid sensing ensembles with improved sensitivity and selectivity or for target analytes for which selectivity is hard to achieve by conventional methods, which were often inspired by protein binding pockets or ion channels in membranes, to very recent approaches relying on target-gated amplified signalling with functionalised mesoporous inorganic supports and the integration of native biological sensory species such as transmembrane proteins in spherically supported bilayer membranes. Besides obvious mimicry of recognition-based processes, selected approaches toward chemical transduction junctions utilizing artificially organized synapses, hybrid ensembles for improved antibody generation and uniquely colour changing systems are discussed. All of these strategies open up exciting new prospects for the development of sensing concepts and sensory devices at the interface of nanotechnology, smart materials and supramolecular (bio)chemistry.
Gated hybrid delivery systems: En route to sensory materials with inherent signal amplification
(2013)
Hybrid nanoparticles with a large specific surface area are a particularly exciting vehicle for delivery applications. Such highly porous or container-like structures, usually prepared from silica and frequently from gold, can incorporate a large number of chemical substances such as drug and/or indicator molecules. When equipped with a chemically or physically addressable gating function at the openings of the voids, the release of the cargo can be controlled at will. Because many more molecules can be stored as cargo in the pores of the support than there are functional groups as anchoring sites for the gating entities attached to the outer surface (for efficient pore capping), the systems possess inherent features of (signal) amplification. The present article will introduce various design strategies for different types of physical (light, temperature, magnetism) and chemical (pH, metal ions, anion, small organic molecules, enzymes) stimuli in connection with drug and indicator release. We will highlight exciting aspects of combining both features in theranostic applications and will stress which requirements still have to be met by many of the systems to be readily applicable in a sensory context.
The combination of suitable nanoscopic inorganic supports with supramolecular concepts and bioconjugation strategies opens up exciting perspectives for the development of bioinorganic and organicinorganic hybrid materials with improved functionalities. Many of the examples from the period 2004 to mid-2007 reviewed here bridge the gap between molecules, materials sciences, biochemistry, and nanotechnology. The synergistic use of these approaches has led to the advancement of various functions such as enhanced recognition, amplified signaling, the controlled assembly and disassembly of aggregates and 3-D architectures. Many of the implemented active functions can be carried out in a reversible and directed fashion on purpose by triggering with an external stimulus. These ideas bring tunability to properties of inorganic solids and new perspectives of application to biochemical and supramolecular concepts. Classic inorganic chemistries such as metal or semiconductor nanoparticles, silica or carbon materials, and coordination chemistry are thus elevated to another level of sophistication and contribute significantly to frontier research areas in directed transport and delivery, nanoelectronics and mechanics, chip technology, smart materials, memory devices, and bioanalytics.
The article discusses representative examples published in the field of functional biomimetic chemistry of hybrid materials between 2004 and mid-2007. First, we focus on the modification of morphological aspects of (bio)organicinorganic hybrid materials to create sophisticated gating and switching mechanisms. The architecture of the systems is presented and the elements of control by external stimuli that have been established in recent years, such as optical, electrochemical, chemical, thermal, or magnetic means, are described. Various functions ranging from (site-specific) delivery to indication at the nanometric level are reported. Next we develop the idea of utilizing hybrid frameworks for biomimetic signaling inspired by the way nature has created binding pockets and the concept of induced-fit. Such a merging of inorganic scaffolds with supramolecular concepts results in enhanced molecular recognition and signaling. Finally selected recent advances in the field of hybrid biomimetic motors both of linear and rotary types are presented. The contribution shows how novel biomimetic functions can arise from synergisms between specifically designed hybrid materials and the implementation of supramolecular and/or bioorganic concepts.
Supramolecular interactions are vital processes in many chemical sensors, biochemical assays, and other analytical detection schemes. On the background of the current, rapidly developing, and constantly changing requirements for (bio)analytical techniques, the classical molecular host is increasingly overburdened to accomplish a specific analytical task with the desired selectivity and sensitivity. Instead, other signaling strategies have to be conceived that overcome the limits in signal output, dynamic range, or compound targeting, which are imminent to various traditional methods. A very promising approach is the combination of concepts of supramolecular chemistry with nanostructured or nanoscopic inorganic materials, that is, the development of hybrid sensor materials. Such hybrids often lead to improved functionality and enhanced performance, and the present chapter discusses the contributory features in relation to the major aspects, which are related to the enhanced coordination by the preorganization of binding sites, signal amplification by the preorganization on surfaces, aggregation‐mediated signaling, surface‐modification‐based signaling, the tuning of selectivity through polarity and size, and gated signaling.
The article discusses representative examples published in the field of functional biomimetic chemistry of hybrid materials between 2004 and mid-2007. First, we focus on the modification of morphological aspects of (bio)organicinorganic hybrid materials to create sophisticated gating and switching mechanisms. The architecture of the systems is presented and the elements of control by external stimuli that have been established in recent years, such as optical, electrochemical, chemical, thermal, or magnetic means, are described. Various functions ranging from (site-specific) delivery to indication at the nanometric level are reported. Next we develop the idea of utilizing hybrid frameworks for biomimetic signaling inspired by the way nature has created binding pockets and the concept of induced-fit. Such a merging of inorganic scaffolds with supramolecular concepts results in enhanced molecular recognition and signaling. Finally selected recent advances in the field of hybrid biomimetic motors both of linear and rotary types are presented. The contribution shows how novel biomimetic functions can arise from synergisms between specifically designed hybrid materials and the implementation of supramolecular and/or bioorganic concepts.
The combination of suitable nanoscopic inorganic supports with supramolecular concepts and bioconjugation strategies opens up exciting perspectives for the development of bioinorganic and organicinorganic hybrid materials with improved functionalities. Many of the examples from the period 2004 to mid-2007 reviewed here bridge the gap between molecules, materials sciences, biochemistry, and nanotechnology. The synergistic use of these approaches has led to the advancement of various functions such as enhanced recognition, amplified signaling, the controlled assembly and disassembly of aggregates and 3-D architectures. Many of the implemented active functions can be carried out in a reversible and directed fashion on purpose by triggering with an external stimulus. These ideas bring tunability to properties of inorganic solids and new perspectives of application to biochemical and supramolecular concepts. Classic inorganic chemistries such as metal or semiconductor nanoparticles, silica or carbon materials, and coordination chemistry are thus elevated to another level of sophistication and contribute significantly to frontier research areas in directed transport and delivery, nanoelectronics and mechanics, chip technology, smart materials, memory devices, and bioanalytics.