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An artificial molecular pump

Nature Nanotechnology volume 10, pages 547–553 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

Carrier proteins consume fuel in order to pump ions or molecules across cell membranes, creating concentration gradients. Their control over diffusion pathways, effected entirely through noncovalent bonding interactions, has inspired chemists to devise artificial systems that mimic their function. Here, we report a wholly artificial compound that acts on small molecules to create a gradient in their local concentration. It does so by using redox energy and precisely organized noncovalent bonding interactions to pump positively charged rings from solution and ensnare them around an oligomethylene chain, as part of a kinetically trapped entanglement. A redox-active viologen unit at the heart of a dumbbell-shaped molecular pump plays a dual role, first attracting and then repelling the rings during redox cycling, thereby enacting a flashing energy ratchet mechanism with a minimalistic design. Our artificial molecular pump performs work repetitively for two cycles of operation and drives rings away from equilibrium toward a higher local concentration.

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Figure 1: A blueprint for an artificial molecular pump that acts to compartmentalize rings in a high-energy state on a polymethylene chain.
Figure 2: Components of the artificial molecular pump.
Figure 3: Graphical representations of the pumping mechanism, which operates in response to redox cycling, with simplified illustrations of the corresponding energy profiles.
Figure 4: 1H NMR spectroscopic evidence in support of the stepwise pumping of rings onto DB3+ over two cycles of reduction and oxidation.
Figure 5: 1H NOESY and DOSY spectroscopic evidence confirms that the ring(s) encircle the ring-collecting oligomethylene chain.

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Acknowledgements

This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF; CHE-1308107). The authors acknowledge the Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center at Northwestern University for providing access to equipment for relevant experiments. The authors acknowledge the QUEST High-Performance Computing Cluster at Northwestern University for a research allocation of computer time. S.T.S. thanks the International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN) at Northwestern University for a postdoctoral fellowship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, 60208, Illinois, USA

    Chuyang Cheng, Paul R. McGonigal, Severin T. Schneebeli, Hao Li, Nicolaas A. Vermeulen, Chenfeng Ke & J. Fraser Stoddart

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  1. Chuyang Cheng
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  2. Paul R. McGonigal
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  3. Severin T. Schneebeli
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  7. J. Fraser Stoddart
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Contributions

C.C. and N.A.V. conceived the project. C.C. designed, synthesized and tested the compounds. P.R.M., S.T.S. and H.L. performed the barrier searching work. P.R.M. and C.C. wrote the paper. N.A.V. and C.K. helped in evaluating the results and commented on the contents of the manuscript. J.F.S. directed the project.

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Correspondence to J. Fraser Stoddart.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Cheng, C., McGonigal, P., Schneebeli, S. et al. An artificial molecular pump. Nature Nanotech 10, 547–553 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2015.96

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