Jean-Marie Lehn
Institut de Science et d’Ingénierie Supramoléculaires, Université de Strasbourg, France
Supramolecular chemistry Supramolecular chemistry aims at constructing and implementing highly complex chemical systems from molecular components held together by non-covalent intermolecular forces.
Supramolecular chemistry is intrinsically a dynamic chemistry in view of the lability of the interactions connecting the molecular components of a supramolecular entity and the resulting ability of supramolecular species to exchange their molecular constituents. Similarly, molecular entities containing reversible covalent bonds may undergo a continuous change in constitution by reorganization and exchange of building blocks. Taken together, these features define a Constitutional Dynamic Chemistry (CDC) concerning both the molecular and supramolecular levels.
CDC takes advantage of dynamic constitutional diversity to allow variation and selection so as to achieve adaptation, opening the path towards adaptive chemistry. Its combinatorial features led to the development of a dynamic combinatorial/covalent chemistry, as a novel approach to drug discovery, such as the search for enzyme inhibitors and substrates for biological receptors. Applying these considerations to materials and to polymer chemistry leads to the definition of constitutionally dynamic materials and in particular dynamic polymers, DYNAMERS, of both molecular and supramolecular types, possessing the capacity of adaptation by association/growth/dissociation sequences. Supramolecular materials, in particular supramolecular polymers may be generated by the polyassociation of components/monomers interconnected through complementary recognition groups. Dynamic covalent polymers result from polycondensation via reversible chemical reactions. They may undergo modifications of their properties (mechanical, optical, ect.) via incorporation, exchange and recombination of their monomeric components.
Supramolecular chemistry and CDC have thus opened novel perspectives in materials science, in particular towards the development of supramolecular and dynamic biomaterials for biological and medical applications.
REFERENCES
Lehn, J.-M., Supramolecular Chemistry: Concepts and Perspectives, VCH Weinheim, 1995.
Lehn, J.-M., Dynamic combinatorial chemistry and virtual combinatorial libraries, Chem. Eur. J., 1999, 5, 2455.
Lehn, J.-M., Toward complex matter: Supramolecular chemistry and self-organization, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 2002, 99, 4763.
Lehn, J.-M., Dynamers : Dynamic molecular and supramolecular polymers, Prog. Polym. Sci., 2005, 30, 814.
Lehn, J.-M., From supramolecular chemistry towards constitutional dynamic chemistry and adaptive chemistry, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2007, 36, 151.
Lehn, J.-M., PChapter 1, in Constitutional Dynamic Chemistry, ed. M. Barboiu, Topics Curr. Chem, 2012, 322, 1-32.
Lehn, J.-M.,Perspectives in Chemistry – Steps towards Complex Matter, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2013, 52, 2836-2850.
Lehn, J.-M.,Dynamers : Dynamic molecular and supramolecular polymers, Prog. Polym. Sci., 2005, 30, 814.