New types of macrocyclic complexing agent precursors with [3,]phane molecular skeletons were synthesized by reaction of 1,3-bis(bromomethyl)arenes with sodium ethyl malonates. After chromatographic separation, the eighteen-membered trimethoxy[3,]metacyclophane I11 a together with the twentyfour-membered tetramethoxy[3,]metacyclophane II2a and the twentyfour-membered [3,](2,6)pyridinophane 12a could be isolated as crystalline compounds. The crystal structures of I2a, II2a, and IIIla were determined by single-crystal Xray structure analyses. The presented syntheses of the proposed molecular skeletons of metacyclophane type I1 and pyridinophane type I provide a facile route to substituted macrocycles which can be easily converted into polyacids with manifold substitution patterns.A great deal of supramolecular chemistry involves the design, synthesis, complexation, and host properties of new selective complex ligands. These chelating agents have been shown to be useful for metal extraction"], as clinical antidote chelates against heavy metal poisoning['], as clinical diagnostics (fluorescent radio diagnostic^[^], NMR imagingI5]) and for other applications. We have been working for several years on the design of new ligands for diverse guests [6]. For the effective distinction between potential guests, a flexible synthetic approach to the ligand skeleton has to be ensured in order to adapt it to the individual guest (tailoring of the host for the guest and vice versa). To this end, we developed diverse skeletons in the past years with oligo~yclic[~], monocyclic phaneI8], or molecular tweezer [9] character. These skeletons have to be endowed selectively with substituents such as carboxylic, amine, amide, or imino and other functional groups in order to tune the complexing capacity of the donor centers to the character of the guest. In the field of diagnostic agents, a high variability of the ligand lipophilicity has to be ensured, since only rather lipophilic drugs and diagnostics are able to pass the blood-brain barrierl4"1.In this paper we report on new structural approaches combining features of powerful oligo amino carboxylic acid complexing agents such as EDTA and DTPA with the framework of a size-discriminating cavity. A second class of potential new complex ligands described in this context can be regarded as oligophenolic siderophore analogs. Siderophores [lO] are naturally occurring powerful iron chelators, which enable microorganisms to absorb the essential metal iron. In our concept developed here, the free cyclopolyacids of type Ib containing basic pyridine nitrogen donor centers, can be envisioned as cyclic EDTA analogs, whereas the oligohydroxy [3,,]metacyclophanes of type IId represent endoacidic cyclic oligophenols (Scheme 1).
Results and DiscussionIn the present paper, we describe a simple synthetic route to such new macrocyclic ligand skeletons of the [3,]phane type" for many potential applications.The presented new macrocycles of type Ia and IIa were isolated from reaction mixtures obtained by a m...