Coinduction of a Chiral Microenvironment in Polypyrrole by Overoxidation and Camphorsulfonic Acid for Electrochemical Chirality Sensing

Functionalized Chiral Materials for Use in Chiral Sensors

Chirality represents a fundamental attribute within living systems and is a pervasive phenomenon in the natural world. The identification and analysis of chiral materials within natural environments and biological systems hold paramount importance in clinical, chemical, and biological sciences. Within chiral analysis, there is a burgeoning focus on developing chiral sensors exhibiting exceptional selectivity, sensitivity, and stability, marking it as a forefront area of research. In the past decade (2013-2023), approximately 1990 papers concerning the application of various chiral materials in chiral sensors have been published. Biological materials and nanomaterials have important applications in the development of chiral sensors, which accounting for 26.67% and 45.24% of the material-related applications in these sensors, respectively; moreover, the development of chiral nanomaterials is closely related to the development of portable and stable chiral sensors. Natural chiral materials, utilized as selective recognition units, are combined with carriers characterized by good physical and chemical properties through functionalization to form various functional chiral materials, which improve the recognition efficiency of chiral sensors. In this article, from the perspective of biological materials, polymer materials, nanomaterials, and other functional chiral materials, the applications of chiral sensors are summarized and the research prospects of chiral sensors are discussed.

A chiral metal-organic framework/cyclodextrin sensing interface for the chiral discrimination of tryptophan enantiomers

A chiral metal-organic framework (CMOF) was synthesized by introducing L-histidine (L-His) to zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) and then grafting with carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin (CM-β-CD). Compared with L-His-ZIF-8, the CM-β-CD-functionalized L-His-ZIF-8 (L-His-ZIF-8-CD) showed significantly enhanced discrimination ability for the tryptophan (Trp) enantiomers owing to the inherent chirality of CM-β-CD. The specificity of the chiral interface was also studied, and the results indicated that the discrimination ability for Trp enantiomers is significantly stronger than that for the enantiomers of cysteine (Cys) and tyrosine (Tyr), which might be due to the better matching between the indole ring of Trp and the chiral cavity of CM-β-CD.

Microfluidic chip and chiroptical gold nanoparticle-based colorimetric sensor for enantioselective detection of L-tryptophan

Herein, we introduce a novel integrated system that merges an enantio-discriminative bio-MOF-packed centrifugal microfluidic chip made from PDMS with a user-friendly on-site colorimetric sensor. This innovative approach enables the precise enantioselective recognition of L-tryptophane (L-Trp). This chiral recognition probe was successfully synthesized through meticulous control of nano-ovals-shaped gold nanoparticles morphology and surface passivation. The operational factor of this methodology was optimized to ensure simplicity, practicality, and efficiency. This optimization led to reduced reagent consumption and instantaneous analytical feedback. The integrated system was effectively applied for enantioselective separation and quantification of L-Trp across an extensive linear range of 50 μM-1.5 mM, impressive limit of detection as low as 15 μM. It is noteworthy that this integrated system demonstrated desirable selectivity even in the presence of similar biomolecules, showcasing its robust performance and rapid detection capability. Further extended the application of this strategy to exceptional performance across enantioselective sensing of L-Trp in various sample matrices, comprising bovine serum albumin, bovine milk, blood plasma and urine samples. This integrated microfluidic sample pretreatment, chiroptical sensing, and on-site signal recording with a smartphone hold tremendous potential for widespread implementation, practical applications engaging healthcare and environmental, food safety, and point-of-needs analysis, facilitating successive solution mixing and colorimetric detection.

Pure Covalent-Organic Framework Membrane as a Label-Free Biomimetic Nanochannel for Sensitive and Selective Sensing of Chiral Flavor Substances

Chiral flavor substances play an important role in the human perception of different tastes. Here, we report a pure covalent-organic framework (COF) membrane nanochannel in combination with a chiral gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) selector for sensing chiral flavor substances. The pure COF membrane with a proper pore size is selected as the nanochannel, while l-cysteine-modified AuNPs (l-Cys-AuNPs) are used as the chiral selector. l-Cys-AuNPs show stronger binding to the S-enantiomer than the R-enantiomer, causing current reduction to different degrees for the R- and S-enantiomer to achieve chiral sensing due to the synergistic effect of the size exclusion of the COF nanochannel and the chiral selectivity of l-Cys-AuNPs. The developed COF membrane nanochannel sensing platform not only allows an easy balance of the permeability and selectivity, which is difficult to achieve in traditional polymer membrane nanochannel sensors, but also exhibits better chiral performance than commercial artificial anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) nanochannel sensors. The developed nanochannel sensor is successfully applied for sensing flavor enantiomers such as limonene, propanediol, methylbutyric acid, and butanol with the enantiomer excess values of 55.2% (propanediol) and 72.4% (limonene) and the low detection limits of 36 (limonene) and 71 (propanediol) ng L-1. This study provides a new idea for the construction of nanochannel platforms based on the COF for sensitive and selective chiral sensing.

Chiral Materials: Progress, Applications, and Prospects

Chirality is a universal phenomenon in molecular and biological systems, denoting an asymmetric configurational property where an object cannot be superimposed onto its mirror image by any kind of translation or rotation, which is ubiquitous on the scale from neutrinos to spiral galaxies. Chirality plays a very important role in the life system. Many biological molecules in the life body show chirality, such as the "codebook" of the earth's biological diversity-DNA, nucleic acid, etc. Intriguingly, living organisms hierarchically consist of homochiral building blocks, for example, l-amino acids and d-sugars with unknown reason. When molecules with chirality interact with these chiral factors, only one conformation favors the positive development of life, that is, the chiral host environment can only selectively interact with chiral molecules of one of the conformations. The differences in chiral interactions are often manifested by chiral recognition, mutual matching, and interactions with chiral molecules, which means that the stereoselectivity of chiral molecules can produce changes in pharmacodynamics and pathology. Here, the latest investigations are summarized including the construction and applications of chiral materials based on natural small molecules as chiral source, natural biomacromolecules as chiral sources, and the material synthesized by design as a chiral source.

Highly Efficient versus Null Electrochemical Enantioselective Recognition Controlled by Achiral Colinkers in Homochiral Metal-Organic Frameworks

Chiral materials capable of electrochemical enantiomeric recognition are highly desirable for many applications, but it is still very challenging to achieve high recognition efficiency for lack of the knowledge of structure-property relationships. Here, we report the completely distinct enantiomeric recognition related to slightly different achiral colinkers in isomorphic homochiral metal-organic frameworks with the same chiral linker. Cu-TBPBe, for which the achiral colinker has two pyridyl rings connected by ─CH═CH─, shows excellent enantioselectivity and sensitivity for electrochemical recognition of l-tryptophan (Trp) with a detection limit of 3.16 nM. The l-to-d ratio of differential pulse voltammetric (DPV) currents reaches 53, which is much higher than the values (2-14) reported for previous electrochemical sensors. By contrast, Cu-TBPBa, in which the achiral colinker has -CH₂-CH₂- between pyridyl rings, is incapable of discrimination between l-Trp and d-Trp. Structural and spectral analyses suggest that the achiral conjugated colinker and the chiral moieties around it cooperate to produce a chiral pocket in favor of enantioselective adsorption through multiple hydrogen-bonding and π-π stacking interactions. The work demonstrated that Cu-TBPBe can be used to fabricate reliable electrochemical sensors for ultrasensitive quantification of Trp enantiomers in racemic mixtures and in complex biological systems such as urine. The work also highlights that an achiral coligand can be of vital importance in determining enantiomeric discrimination, opening up a new avenue for the design of chiral sensing materials.

Chemical characterization, absolute configuration and optical purity of (1S)-(+)- and (1R)-(-)-10-camphorsulfonic acid

Comprehensive chemical characterization for two isomers of camphorsulfonic acid (CSA), occasionally used in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), was performed by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, high-resolution mass spectroscopy in negative electrospray ionization mode and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) in electron ionization mode. Electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra together with quantum chemical calculations using time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) were used to assign the stereochemistry for CSA for the first time and these assignments were then confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. As crystals were grown under the same conditions of high supersaturation using a mixed solvent without water removal, the crystal structures of the two enantiomers contained one ordered molecule of water in the asymmetric unit. The crystals of the (+)-enantiomer have a 1S,4R configuration and the H atom of the sulfonic acid group combines with the water molecule to form a hydronium ion, namely, hydronium (1S,4R)-(7,7-dimethyl-2-oxobicyclo[2.2.1]heptan-1-yl)methanesulfonate, H₃O⁺·C₁₀H₁₅O₄S^-. The crystals of the (-)-enantiomer have a 1R,4S configuration. The determination of the optical purity of CSA using NMR spectroscopy with a chiral solvating agent, (1R,2R)-1,2-diphenylethane-1,2-diamine, and GC/MS with a chiral column has been well explored. The results showed that the examined samples of these two isomers of CSA proved to be enantiomerically pure. In particular, for (1R)-(-)-10-camphorsulfonic acid, this is, to our knowledge, the first description on its spectral characterization in a scientific context.

Doped Polythiophene Chiral Electrodes as Electrochemical Biosensors

π-conducting materials such as chiral polythiophenes exhibit excellent electrochemical stability in doped and undoped states on electrode surfaces (chiral electrodes), which help tune their physical and electronic properties for a wide range of uses. To overcome the limitations of traditional surface immobilization methods, an alternative pathway for the detection of organic and bioorganic targets using chiral electrodes has been developed. Moreover, chiral electrodes have the ability to carry functionalities, which helps the immobilization and recognition of bioorganic molecules. In this review, we describe the use of polythiophenes for the design of chiral electrodes and their applications as electrochemical biosensors.

Ultrasensitive Electrochemical Impedance Chiral Discrimination and Sensing of Tryptophan Isomers Based on Core-Shell-Structured Au-Ag Nanoparticles

Au-Ag nanoparticles (Au-Ag NPs) with a core-shell structure are prepared and used for ultrasensitive electrochemical impedance (EI) discrimination of the isomers of tryptophan (Trp). As revealed by circular dichroism, rotary polarization caused by the Au-Ag NPs is consistent with D-Trp but opposite to L-Trp, and thus, the Au-Ag NPs can selectively combine with D-Trp through preferential interactions. Compared with Au-Ag NPs, the composites of D-Trp and Au-Ag NPs (Au-Ag NPs/D-Trp) display significantly increased charge transfer resistance (R_ct); differently, the R_ct of Au-Ag NPs/L-Trp remains almost unchanged because the Au-Ag NPs exhibit poor affinity toward L-Trp. Therefore, ultrasensitive EI enantiodiscrimination of the isomers of Trp is realized even at an extremely low concentration of the Trp isomers (0.1 nM). In addition, it is successfully applied in the ultrasensitive determination of D-Trp at a low concentration level (0.1 nM∼10 μM).

Supramolecular assembly induced chiral interface for electrochemical recognition of tryptophan enantiomers

The β-CD@PEI-Fc chiral interface was prepared based on the supramolecular host-guest interaction between ferrocene (Fc) grafted polyethyleneimine (PEI-Fc) and chiral β-cyclodextrin (β-CD). SEM results show that β-CD@PEI-Fc interface has a regular spatial structure, which can effectively distinguish tryptophan (Trp) enantiomers. Under the optimal conditions, differential pulse voltammetry shows that the peak current ratio (Id/Il) of Trp enantiomers can reach 2.84 at 15 °C. More interestingly, the β-CD@PEI-Fc/GCE exhibited chiral recognition of d-Trp and l-Trp via water contact angle measurements. There was a good linear relationship between the peak current and the concentration of Trp enantiomers in the range from 0.005 mM to 0.10 mM. Finally, the chiral interface can be applied for quick detection of the proportion of isomers in Trp racemic solution, which is very important for chiral recognition in racemic mixture of chiral compounds. Meanwhile, the β-CD@PEI-Fc/GCE showed good stability and reproducibility.

Enantioselective Recognition of Chiral Tryptophan with Achiral Glycine through the Strategy of Chirality Transfer

Glycine (Gly), an achiral amino acid, has never been reported for enantioselective recognition owing to the absence of chiral sites. Herein, a facile strategy of chirality transfer is proposed to endow Gly with chirality. Optically active CuO, L-CuO, is first prepared, which can be used for the decoration of Gly through the formation of the Cu(Gly)₂ complex. Successful chirality transfer from L-CuO to Gly is confirmed by circular dichroism (CD) spectra. The formation of the Cu(Gly)₂ complex is further confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Next, the resultant L-CuO-Gly is used for chiral analysis of the isomers of tryptophan (Trp). Because of the higher affinity of L-CuO-Gly toward L-Trp than its isomer, the Trp isomers exhibit significant differences in their oxidation peak currents at the L-CuO-Gly-modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) (I_L-Trp/I_D-Trp = 5.24). Finally, the practicability of the developed L-CuO-Gly/GCE is assessed, and the results indicate that it could be a reliable chiral sensor for the quantitative analysis of Trp isomers in nonracemic mixtures.

Chiral Enantioselective Assemblies Induced from Achiral Porphyrin by l- and d-Lysine

π-Conjugated porphyrins have aroused particular attention for nanofabrication and biomimics; however, little attention has been paid to porphyrins-based chiral analysis owing to the achiral feature of porphyrins. Here, we demonstrated a chiral self-assembly of achiral porphyrin induced by l- and d-lysine (l- and d-Lys), and the resultant porphyrin self-assembly exhibited alterable morphologies depending on the inducer used (l- or d-Lys). The supramolecular chirality of the self-assembly was characterized by circular dichroism (CD) spectra, confirming successful transfer of molecular chirality from l- and d-Lys to the self-assembly. The enantioselective property of the chiral self-assembly was also investigated by using tryptophan (Trp) isomers as the model, and the results indicated that the developed chiral self-assembly showed significantly higher affinity toward l-Trp than d-Trp. Also in this work, the l-/d-Lys-induced chiral self-assembly of porphyrin and the supramolecular interaction between the self-assembly and l-/d-Trp were also studied by density functional theory (DFT).

Single-Template Molecularly Imprinted Chiral Sensor for Simultaneous Recognition of Alanine and Tyrosine Enantiomers

Chiral recognition of l-amino acids is of significant importance due to the crucial role of l-amino acids in life sciences and pharmaceutics. In this work, a chiral sensor with capability of probing two chiral amino acids by an attractive single-template molecular imprinting strategy is introduced and used in the simultaneous chiral recognition of d/l-alanine (d/l-Ala) and d/l-tyrosine (d/l-Tyr). The assay relies on the hydrolysis of l-alanyl-l-tyrosine dipeptide doped in silica/polypyrrole (SiO₂/PPy) under acidic conditions, resulting in l-Ala and l-Tyr coimprinted chiral sensor. This work opens up a new avenue for simultaneous chiral sensing of two or more chiral amino acids by incorporating only one template, circumventing the shortcomings encountered with multitemplate molecularly imprinted technology.

A chiral signal-amplified sensor for enantioselective discrimination of amino acids based on charge transfer-induced SERS

An ultra-high sensitivity enantioselective sensor with excellent discrimination performance for trace amino acids by using charge transfer-induced SERS.