Silica Mineralization of DNA‐Inspired 1D and 2D Supramolecular Polymers

Abstract

The preparation of hybrid materials from supramolecular polymers through the sol‐gel process is presented. Supramolecular polymers are assembled from phosphodiester‐linked pyrene oligomers and act as water‐soluble one‐ or two‐dimensional templates for silicification. The fibrillary and planar morphologies of the assemblies, as well as the excitonic interactions between the chromophores, remain unaffected by the silicification process.

Nano-thin 2D Soft Materials – Design Principles and Prospects

“…1, can be used as templates for the growth of inorganic materials. [23] We demonstrated that using water-soluble 2D scaffolds opens the door to nanothin silicates. First, a positively charged reagent, methyl [3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl] ammoniumchloride, is added to create nucleation sites on the nanosheet surface.…”

“…TEM images of nanosheets from 1 before (A, B) and after (C, D) growing a silica shell around the SP sheets (adapted from ref. [23]). Reprinted with permission; copyright Wiley.…”

DNA-inspired oligomers: from oligophosphates to functional materials

“…Thus, replacing the two amide groups of the pyrene core with triple bonds leads to the formation of micrometre long fibers even with very short oligomers, such as trimer 20 and at considerably lower ionic strength. 27 The enhanced tendency to aggregate was ascribed to an increased hydrophobicity of the alkynyl linkers relative to carboxamides. Owing to the dynamic nature of supramolecular polymers, oligomers 21 and 22 are readily integrated into fibers by cooling a pre-heated mixture (above the temperature of disassembly) containing both types of oligomers.…”

“…Due to the multi-charged nature of the nanosheets in an aqueous environment, it is possible to use them as nucleation templates for biomineralization. 27 In this approach, a shell of various inorganic materials with a controlled thickness can be grown at the outside of a template. Once oligophosphodiester derived nanosheets are formed, 2D silica sheets can be prepared by adapting the protocols previously developed and successfully applied to long double-stranded DNAs (Fig.…”

High definition polyphosphoesters: between nucleic acids and plastics

“…115 Adding the complements to the DNA gives networks-of-ribbons, presumed to occur through blunt-end stacking. 116 Interface with other nanomaterials is also possible: gold nanoparticles with complementary DNA attached can hybridise to these ribbons, 117 while silica mineralisation can also be achieved on oligopyrenotide nanostructures 118 and cationic porphyrins can bind to them as 'groove binders.' 119 Li and coworkers have also extended their DNA scaffolded chromophores to non-nucleosidic systems which combine selfassembly with unusual optical properties.…”