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Gaeta M, Travagliante G, Barcellona M, Fragalà ME, Purrello R, D'Urso A. Self-Assembled Chiral Film Based on Melanin Polymers. Chirality 2024; 36:e23695. [PMID: 38890151 DOI: 10.1002/chir.23695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2024] [Revised: 05/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024]
Abstract
Chirality plays a fundamental role in natural phenomena, yet its manifestation on solid surfaces remains relatively unexplored. In this study, we investigate the formation of chiroptical melanin-based self-assembled films on quartz substrates, leveraging mussel-inspired surface chemistry. Water-soluble porphyrins serve as molecular synthons, facilitating the spontaneous formation of hetero-aggregates in phosphate-buffered saline containing L- or D-DOPA. Spectroscopic analysis reveals chiral transfer from DOPA enantiomers to porphyrin hetero-aggregates, followed by the disruption of these latter and subsequent generation of chiral melanin structures in solution. Quartz substrates inserted into these solutions spontaneously accumulate homogeneous melanin-like films over days, demonstrating the feasibility of self-assembly. The resulting films exhibit characteristic UV/Vis and CD spectra, with distinct signals indicating successful chiral induction. Interestingly, the AFM characterizations reveal a distinct surface morphology, and in addition, some thermal and mechanical properties have been taken into account. Overall, this study sheds light on the formation, stability, and chiroptical properties of melanin-based films, paving the way for their application in various fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimiliano Gaeta
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Università degli Studi di Catania, Catania, Italy
| | | | - Matteo Barcellona
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Università degli Studi di Catania, Catania, Italy
| | - Maria Elena Fragalà
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Università degli Studi di Catania, Catania, Italy
| | - Roberto Purrello
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Università degli Studi di Catania, Catania, Italy
| | - Alessandro D'Urso
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Università degli Studi di Catania, Catania, Italy
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Magna G, Šakarašvili M, Stefanelli M, Giancane G, Bettini S, Valli L, Ustrnul L, Borovkov V, Aav R, Monti D, Di Natale C, Paolesse R. Chiral Recognition by Supramolecular Porphyrin-Hemicucurbit[8]uril-Functionalized Gravimetric Sensors. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2023. [PMID: 37326387 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c05177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Enantiorecognition of a chiral analyte usually requires the ability to respond with high specificity to one of the two enantiomers of a chiral compound. However, in most cases, chiral sensors have chemical sensitivity toward both enantiomers, showing differences only in the intensity of responses. Furthermore, specific chiral receptors are obtained with high synthetic efforts and have limited structural versatility. These facts hinder the implementation of chiral sensors in many potential applications. Here, we utilize the presence of both enantiomers of each receptor to introduce a novel normalization that allows the enantio-recognition of compounds even when single sensors are not specific for one enantiomer of a target analyte. For this purpose, a novel protocol that permits the fabrication of a large set of enantiomeric receptor pairs with low synthetic efforts by combining metalloporphyrins with (R,R)- and (S,S)-cyclohexanohemicucurbit[8]uril is developed. The potentialities of this approach are investigated by an array of four pairs of enantiomeric sensors fabricated using quartz microbalances since gravimetric sensors are intrinsically non-selective toward the mechanism of interaction of analytes and receptors. Albeit the weak enantioselectivity of single sensors toward limonene and 1-phenylethylamine, the normalization allows the correct identification of these enantiomers in the vapor phase indifferent to their concentration. Remarkably, the achiral metalloporphyrin choice influences the enantioselective properties, opening the way to easily obtain a large library of chiral receptors that can be implemented in actual sensor arrays. These enantioselective electronic noses and tongues may have a potential striking impact in many medical, agrochemical, and environmental fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Magna
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Marko Šakarašvili
- Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Science, Tallinn University of Technology, Akadeemia tee 15, SCI-421A, 12618 Tallinn, Harju Maakon, Estonia
| | - Manuela Stefanelli
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Gabriele Giancane
- Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Salento, Via D. Birago, 48, I-73100 Lecce, Italy
| | - Simona Bettini
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, DISTEBA, University of Salento, Via per Arnesano, I-73100 Lecce, Italy
| | - Ludovico Valli
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, DISTEBA, University of Salento, Via per Arnesano, I-73100 Lecce, Italy
| | - Lukas Ustrnul
- Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Science, Tallinn University of Technology, Akadeemia tee 15, SCI-421A, 12618 Tallinn, Harju Maakon, Estonia
| | - Victor Borovkov
- Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Science, Tallinn University of Technology, Akadeemia tee 15, SCI-421A, 12618 Tallinn, Harju Maakon, Estonia
| | - Riina Aav
- Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Science, Tallinn University of Technology, Akadeemia tee 15, SCI-421A, 12618 Tallinn, Harju Maakon, Estonia
| | - Donato Monti
- Department of Chemistry, Sapienza University of Rome, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, I-00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Corrado Di Natale
- Department of Electronic Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Roberto Paolesse
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
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Tomei I, Bonanni B, Sgarlata A, Fanfoni M, Martini R, Di Filippo I, Magna G, Stefanelli M, Monti D, Paolesse R, Goletti C. Chiral Porphyrin Assemblies Investigated by a Modified Reflectance Anisotropy Spectroscopy Spectrometer. Molecules 2023; 28:molecules28083471. [PMID: 37110705 PMCID: PMC10142836 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28083471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2023] [Revised: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Reflectance anisotropy spectroscopy (RAS) has been largely used to investigate organic compounds: Langmuir-Blodgett and Langmuir-Schaeffer layers, the organic molecular beam epitaxy growth in situ and in real time, thin and ultrathin organic films exposed to volatiles, in ultra-high vacuum (UHV), in controlled atmosphere and even in liquid. In all these cases, porphyrins and porphyrin-related compounds have often been used, taking advantage of the peculiar characteristics of RAS with respect to other techniques. The technical modification of a RAS spectrometer (CD-RAS: circular dichroism RAS) allows us to investigate the circular dichroism of samples instead of the normally studied linear dichroism: CD-RAS measures (in transmission mode) the anisotropy of the optical properties of a sample under right and left circularly polarized light. Although commercial spectrometers exist to measure the circular dichroism of substances, the "open structure" of this new spectrometer and its higher flexibility in design makes it possible to couple it with UHV systems or other experimental configurations. The importance of chirality in the development of organic materials (from solutions to the solid state, as thin layers deposited-in liquid or in vacuum-on transparent substrates) could open interesting possibilities to a development in the investigation of the chirality of organic and biological layers. In this manuscript, after the detailed explanation of the CD-RAS technique, some calibration tests with chiral porphyrin assemblies in solution or deposited in solid film are reported to demonstrate the quality of the results, comparing curves obtained with CD-RAS and a commercial spectrometer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilaria Tomei
- Department of Physics, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Roma, Italy
| | - Beatrice Bonanni
- Department of Physics, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Roma, Italy
| | - Anna Sgarlata
- Department of Physics, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Roma, Italy
| | - Massimo Fanfoni
- Department of Physics, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Roma, Italy
| | - Roberto Martini
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Ilaria Di Filippo
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Gabriele Magna
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Manuela Stefanelli
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Donato Monti
- Department of Chemistry, Sapienza Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Roberto Paolesse
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Claudio Goletti
- Department of Physics, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Roma, Italy
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Stefanelli M, Magna G, Di Natale C, Paolesse R, Monti D. Stereospecific Self-Assembly Processes of Porphyrin-Proline Conjugates: From the Effect of Structural Features and Bulk Solvent Properties to the Application in Stereoselective Sensor Systems. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:15587. [PMID: 36555226 PMCID: PMC9779260 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232415587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 12/04/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Conjugating the porphyrin ring with an amino acid via amide linkage represents a straightforward way for conferring both amphiphilicity and chirality to the macrocycle. Proline residue is a good choice in this context since its conformational rigidity allows for porphyrin assembling where molecular chirality is efficiently transferred and amplified using properly honed aqueous environments. Herein, we describe the evolution of the studies carried out by our group to achieve chiral systems from some porphyrin-proline derivatives, both in solution and in the solid state. The discussion focuses on some fundamental aspects reflecting on the final molecular architectures obtained, which are related to the nature of the appended group (stereochemistry and charge), the presence of a metal ion coordinated to the porphyrin core and the bulk solvent properties. Indeed, fine-tuning the mentioned parameters enables the achievement of stereospecific structures with distinctive chiroptical and morphological features. Solid films based on these chiral systems were also obtained and their recognition abilities in gaseous and liquid phase are here described.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Stefanelli
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Gabriele Magna
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Corrado Di Natale
- Department of Electronic Engineering, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Viale del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Roberto Paolesse
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Donato Monti
- Department of Chemistry, Sapienza Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
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