Ternary Metal-Cyclodextrin-Guest Complexes in Aqueous Solution: Structure and Binding

有了这个新的奖项，有机和高分子化学项目支持了新奥尔良大学化学系的马修·A·塔尔教授和布兰科·S·尤尔西奇教授的工作。这项研究将研究金属(如Fe2+、Ca2+、Cd2+)、环糊精和可包含在环糊精中的疏水客体分子之间三元络合物的形成、稳定性和几何构型。环糊精是一种呈圆柱状的多糖。将合成几个新的定义良好的环糊精衍生物，其中包含能够螯合各种金属的各种官能团，并将利用吸收光谱、荧光光谱和核磁共振光谱对这些化合物进行研究，以确定三元络合物的结合常数和几何构型。为了确定将合成哪些环糊精衍生物，将采用分子模拟。研究结果将推动环境修复和废物流处理技术的发展，将产生新的药物输送策略和工具，并将为理解金属催化反应提供新的模型和见解。这项研究将在合成新的环糊精衍生物和了解这些化合物如何与其他物种相互作用方面取得进展。此外，它还将涉及研究生、本科生和高中教师以及高中生在团队环境中工作。研究生将获得指导机会，本科生和高中参与者将接触到研究。教师将接受将他们的研究经验融入教学的培训，从而改善中学科学教育。教师将来自为少数群体服务的学校；因此，对学生的影响将增加未来科学家的多样性。

With this new award, the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program supports the work of Professors Matthew A. Tarr and Branko S. Jursic of the Chemistry Department at the University of New Orleans. This research will investigate the formation, stability, and geometry of ternary complexes between metals (e.g. Fe2+, Ca2+, Cd2+), cyclodextrins, and hydrophobic guest molecules that can be included in the cyclodextrin. A cyclodextrin is a polysaccharide which takes the form of a cylinder. Several new well defined cyclodextrin derivatives containing a variety of functional groups capable of chelating various metals will be synthesized and these compounds will be studied using absorbance, fluorescence, and NMR spectroscopy in order to determine binding constants and geometries of the ternary complexes. To decide which cyclodextrin derivatives will be synthesized molecular modeling will be employed. Results of the study will advance environmental remediation and waste stream treatment technologies, will produce new strategies and tools for drug delivery, and will provide new models and insight for understanding metal catalyzed reactions.Broader Impacts. This research will result in advances in both synthesis of new cyclodextrin derivatives and an understanding of how these compounds interact with other species. Further, it will involve graduate students, undergraduate students, and high school teachers along with high school students working in a team setting. The graduate students will receive mentoring opportunities, and undergraduate and high school participants will be exposed to research. Teachers will receive training on incorporating their research experiences into teaching, thereby improving secondary science education. Teachers will be from minority-serving schools; therefore, impacts on their students will increase diversity among future scientists.