-
DNA nanostructures as templates for biomineralization Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2021-01-13 Dimitra Athanasiadou; Karina M. M. Carneiro
-
Towards chemistry at absolute zero Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2021-01-12 Brianna R. Heazlewood; Timothy P. Softley
-
Labelled lignin leaks its secrets Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2021-01-08 David Schilter
Bio-othogonal chemistry lets us determine the fate of a lignin monomer using a radical tag and EPR spectroscopy.
-
Grignard umpolunged Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-12-21 Stephen G. Davey
An electrosynthetic coupling of olefins with ketones provides an alternative approach to synthesize tertiary alcohols traditionally prepared through Grignard addition to ketones, providing a forward path for an unusual disconnection.
-
Down to the bottom of the sea Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-12-14 Gabriella Graziano
Isotopic fractionation of mercury in fish and amphipods reveals that, after release into the atmosphere by human activities, it can reach species in the deep ocean trenches — some of the purest ecosystems.
-
Structural snapshots of catalysis in action Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-12-10 Stephen G. Davey
X-ray crystal structures of transient intermediates obtained during reactions can provide direct evidence of reaction mechanisms and potentially information on structure–reactivity relationships.
-
The elusive relationship between structure and colour emission in beetle luciferases Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-12-09 César Carrasco-López; Nathan M. Lui; Stefan Schramm; Panče Naumov
-
Circularly polarized lanthanide luminescence for advanced security inks Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-12-07 Lewis E. MacKenzie; Robert Pal
-
Stark contrast in selectivity Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-12-01 David Schilter
Electrolyte cations exert different effects that can enhance the rate and selectivity of electrocatalytic CO reduction.
-
Synthesis and applications of anisotropic nanoparticles with precisely defined dimensions Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-11-30 Amanda K. Pearce; Thomas R. Wilks; Maria C. Arno; Rachel K. O’Reilly
-
Engineering of stimuli-responsive lipid-bilayer membranes using supramolecular systems Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-11-19 Matthew J. Langton
-
Hydrogen-bond filtration Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-11-10 Gabriella Graziano
Self-organization of water molecules around solute ions can affect how they permeate through nanoporous liquid-crystalline membranes.
-
Unmasking unusual behaviour Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-11-05 Andrew Bissette
A predictive model of an unusual hyperpositive, enantiodivergent non-linear effect holds wider implications for asymmetric catalysis.
-
Designing disorder into crystalline materials Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-28 Arkadiy Simonov; Andrew L. Goodwin
-
Advances in the chemistry and applications of alkali-metal–gas batteries Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-22 Haining Gao; Betar M. Gallant
-
Group 14 atoms — plane and simple Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-21 David Schilter
Silicon and germanium are predicted to form stable planar pentacoordinate species when inside a ring of five donor atoms.
-
Exploring new targets and chemical space with affinity selection-mass spectrometry Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-21 Renaud Prudent; D. Allen Annis; Peter J. Dandliker; Jean-Yves Ortholand; Didier Roche
-
Exploring new dimensions Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-13 Stephen G. Davey
Using a small organic cage structure as a node has enabled the preparation of a new 3D covalent organic framework.
-
Bimetallic cooperation across the periodic table Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-08 Jesús Campos
Organometallic chemistry and its applications in homogeneous catalysis have been dominated by mononuclear transition-metal complexes. The catalytic performance and physico-chemical properties of these mononuclear complexes can be rationally tuned by ligand modification, which has also led to the discovery of new reactions. There is a growing body of evidence implicating the participation of two metals
-
Deciphering protein post-translational modifications using chemical biology tools Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-06 Anne C. Conibear
Proteins carry out a wide variety of catalytic, regulatory, signalling and structural functions in living systems. Following their assembly on ribosomes and throughout their lifetimes, most eukaryotic proteins are modified by post-translational modifications; small functional groups and complex biomolecules are conjugated to amino acid side chains or termini, and the protein backbone is cleaved, spliced
-
Biosynthesis of inorganic nanomaterials using microbial cells and bacteriophages Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-10-05 Yoojin Choi; Sang Yup Lee
Inorganic nanomaterials are widely used in chemical, electronics, photonics, energy and medical industries. Preparing a nanomaterial (NM) typically requires physical and/or chemical methods that involve harsh and environmentally hazardous conditions. Recently, wild-type and genetically engineered microorganisms have been harnessed for the biosynthesis of inorganic NMs under mild and environmentally
-
Deep learning chemistry ab initio Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-29 Gabriella Graziano
Exact solution to the Schrödinger equation for multiple electron systems typically comes at high computational cost. PauliNet uses deep learning quantum Monte Carlo to find multidimensional wavefunctions that describe molecules with up to 30 electrons.
-
Stereoselectivity in Pd-catalysed cross-coupling reactions of enantioenriched nucleophiles Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-24 Xinghua Ma; Benjamin Murray; Mark R. Biscoe
Advances in Pd-catalysed cross-coupling reactions have facilitated the development of stereospecific variants enabling the use of configurationally stable, enantioenriched, main-group organometallic nucleophiles to form C(sp3)–C(sp2) bonds. Such stereospecific cross-coupling reactions constitute a powerful synthetic approach to attaining precise 3D control of molecular structure, allowing new stereogenic
-
Temporary or removable directing groups enable activation of unstrained C–C bonds Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-21 Ying Xia; Guangbin Dong
Carbon–carbon (C–C) bonds make up the skeletons of most organic molecules. The selective manipulation of C–C bonds offers a direct approach to editing molecular scaffolds but remains challenging. The kinetic inertness of C–C bonds can be overcome with transition-metal catalysis, which, nevertheless, relies on a substrate being highly strained or bearing a permanent directing group (DG). The driving
-
Biomimetic peptide self-assembly for functional materials Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-15 Aviad Levin; Tuuli A. Hakala; Lee Schnaider; Gonçalo J. L. Bernardes; Ehud Gazit; Tuomas P. J. Knowles
Natural biomolecular systems have evolved to form a rich variety of supramolecular materials and machinery fundamental to cellular function. The assembly of these structures commonly involves interactions between specific molecular building blocks, a strategy that can also be replicated in an artificial setting to prepare functional materials. The self-assembly of synthetic biomimetic peptides thus
-
Taking metal–metal interactions for a spin Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-14 David Schilter
First-row transition metal stannyls feature an unusual combination of M–Sn bonding and a high-spin ground state.
-
Chemistry under high pressure Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-14 Maosheng Miao; Yuanhui Sun; Eva Zurek; Haiqing Lin
Thanks to the development of experimental high-pressure techniques and methods for crystal-structure prediction based on quantum mechanics, in the past decade, numerous new compounds, mostly binary, with atypical compositions have been predicted, and some have been synthesized. Differing from conventional solid-state materials, many of these new compounds are comprised of various homonuclear chemical
-
The conductance of conformers Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-09-08 Stephen G. Davey
Single-molecule conductance measurements enable different conformers of cyclohexane to be observed at room temperature.
-
Towards artificial molecular factories from framework-embedded molecular machines Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-08-20 Simon Krause; Ben L. Feringa
Controlling cooperativity, synchronization, amplification and translation of intermolecular and intramolecular dynamics over different length scales for applications in stimuli-responsive robust solids are considered key challenges in materials sciences. In this Perspective, we discuss the possibility of embedding artificial molecular machines into heterogeneous robust frameworks with the goal of creating
-
pHotoacids jump further Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-08-18 David Schilter
Spectroscopy reveals the speciation of a merocyanine photoacid that serves as a light-sensitive pH switch.
-
Forever blowing nanobubbles Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-08-17 Gabriella Graziano
The formation of nanobubbles can limit the efficiency of nanoelectrodes. Molecular simulations can provide important physical insights on the nanobubble nucleation process that results in the current insensitivity to applied potential.
-
Making molecules work together Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-08-07 Stephen G. Davey
Two templates can stack together to enable the formation of a large macrocycle, providing they bind cooperatively to the target. The approach may enable the synthesis of very large macrocycles using relatively simple templates.
-
Casting light on fast motion Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-08-07 Gabriella Graziano
The fast and non-adiabatic nature of photoinduced isomerization reactions makes it difficult to pin down their mechanisms. Time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy using high energy photons and simulations can elucidate the mechanism of the ultrafast ring opening of thiophenone molecules in the gas phase.
-
Recruit and retain a diverse workforce Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-08-05 Brea A. Manuel; Diane B. Karloff
As the world erupts with demands for racial justice, the chemistry community has the obligation, opportunity and momentum to drive for diversity and inclusion in the sciences. Efforts towards that end must begin by allocating opportunities for success on the basis of potential, not privilege, and follow through by soliciting and acting upon feedback from the scholars we have recruited. As the world
-
Bonding electrons happy with single life Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-24 David Schilter
A new diradical features two three-electron sigma interactions between pairs of Se atoms.
-
Bioassembly of complex iron–sulfur enzymes: hydrogenases and nitrogenases Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-22 R. David Britt; Guodong Rao; Lizhi Tao
Nature uses multinuclear metal clusters to catalyse a number of important multielectron redox reactions. Examples that employ complex Fe–S clusters in catalysis include the Fe–Mo cofactor (FeMoco) of nitrogenase and its V and all-Fe variants, and the [FeFe] and [NiFe] hydrogenases. This Perspective begins with a focus on the catalytic H-cluster of [FeFe] hydrogenase, which is highly active in producing
-
Amino acid homorepeats in proteins Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-21 Sreenivas Chavali; Anjali K. Singh; Balaji Santhanam; M. Madan Babu
Amino acid homorepeats, or homorepeats, are polypeptide segments found in proteins that contain stretches of identical amino acid residues. Although abnormal homorepeat expansions are linked to pathologies such as neurodegenerative diseases, homorepeats are prevalent in eukaryotic proteomes, suggesting that they are important for normal physiology. In this Review, we discuss recent advances in our
-
Developing bioorthogonal probes to span a spectrum of reactivities Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-21 Sean S. Nguyen; Jennifer A. Prescher
Bioorthogonal chemistries enable researchers to interrogate biomolecules in living systems. These reactions are highly selective and biocompatible, and can be performed in many complex environments. However, like any organic transformation, there is no perfect bioorthogonal reaction. Choosing the ‘best fit’ for a desired application is crucial. Correspondingly, there must be a variety of chemistries
-
Molecular reactions at aqueous interfaces Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-16 Manuel F. Ruiz-Lopez; Joseph S. Francisco; Marilia T. C. Martins-Costa; Josep M. Anglada
This Review aims to critically analyse the emerging field of chemical reactivity at aqueous interfaces. The subject has evolved rapidly since the discovery of the so-called ‘on-water catalysis’, alluding to the dramatic acceleration of reactions at the surface of water or at its interface with hydrophobic media. We review critical experimental studies in the fields of atmospheric and synthetic organic
-
Inhibition of RNA-binding proteins with small molecules Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-15 Peng Wu
Protein–RNA interactions have crucial roles in various cellular activities, which, when dysregulated, can lead to a range of human diseases. The identification of small molecules that target the interaction between RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and RNA is progressing rapidly and represents a novel strategy for the discovery of chemical probes that facilitate understanding of the cellular functions of
-
Charge-transfer processes in metal complexes enable luminescence and memory functions Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-13 Vivian Wing-Wah Yam; Alan Kwun-Wa Chan; Eugene Yau-Hin Hong
Molecular transition-metal–ligand complexes are emerging as useful paradigms in materials science. Transition metal complexes have diverse metal d electron configurations, oxidation states, coordination numbers and geometries such that they can undergo a diverse array of electronic transitions. Metal-to-ligand charge-transfer transitions and their associated excited states are especially attractive
-
Contain your excitement Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-08 Gabriella Graziano
Vibronic coherences can guide a synthetic control of the lifetime of the excited states in iron(ii)-based complexes.
-
Feeling the effects Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-07 Stephen G. Davey
Experimental models show that through-space effects dominate over through-bond effects when considering the influence of so-called electron-withdrawing or electron-donating substituents on molecular conformation and reactivity.
-
Exploiting chemistry and molecular systems for quantum information science Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-07 Michael R. Wasielewski; Malcolm D. E. Forbes; Natia L. Frank; Karol Kowalski; Gregory D. Scholes; Joel Yuen-Zhou; Marc A. Baldo; Danna E. Freedman; Randall H. Goldsmith; Theodore Goodson; Martin L. Kirk; James K. McCusker; Jennifer P. Ogilvie; David A. Shultz; Stefan Stoll; K. Birgitta Whaley
The power of chemistry to prepare new molecules and materials has driven the quest for new approaches to solve problems having global societal impact, such as in renewable energy, healthcare and information science. In the latter case, the intrinsic quantum nature of the electronic, nuclear and spin degrees of freedom in molecules offers intriguing new possibilities to advance the emerging field of
-
Iron and manganese oxo complexes, oxo wall and beyond Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-02 Virginia A. Larson; Beatrice Battistella; Kallol Ray; Nicolai Lehnert; Wonwoo Nam
High-valent metal–oxo species with multiply-bonded M–O groups have been proposed as key intermediates in many biological and abiological catalytic oxidation reactions. These intermediates are implicated as active oxidants in alkane hydroxylation, olefin epoxidation and other oxidation reactions. For example, [FeivO(porphyrinato•−)]+ cofactors bearing π-radical porphyrinato•− ligands oxidize organic
-
From self-replication to replicator systems en route to de novo life Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-07-01 Paul Adamski; Marcel Eleveld; Ankush Sood; Ádám Kun; András Szilágyi; Tamás Czárán; Eörs Szathmáry; Sijbren Otto
The process by which chemistry can give rise to biology remains one of the biggest mysteries in contemporary science. The de novo synthesis and origin of life both require the functional integration of three key characteristics — replication, metabolism and compartmentalization — into a system that is maintained out of equilibrium and is capable of open-ended Darwinian evolution. This Review takes
-
The periodic table and the physics that drives it Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-06-29 Peter Schwerdtfeger; Odile R. Smits; Pekka Pyykkö
Mendeleev’s introduction of the periodic table of elements is one of the most important milestones in the history of chemistry, as it brought order into the known chemical and physical behaviour of the elements. The periodic table can be seen as parallel to the Standard Model in particle physics, in which the elementary particles known today can be ordered according to their intrinsic properties. The
-
Balancing the hydrogen books Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-06-15 David Schilter
Abiotic sources of H2 in the lithosphere outweigh the sinks, with the balance potentially being available to a large microbial community.
-
Making germanes relevant in cross-coupling Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-06-15 Stephen G. Davey
Although they are generally poor coupling agents under palladium catalysis, germanes are easily cross-coupled under gold catalysis, enabling a new orthogonal cross-coupling reaction.
-
Exploring chemical compound space with quantum-based machine learning Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-06-12 O. Anatole von Lilienfeld; Klaus-Robert Müller; Alexandre Tkatchenko
Rational design of compounds with specific properties requires understanding and fast evaluation of molecular properties throughout chemical compound space — the huge set of all potentially stable molecules. Recent advances in combining quantum-mechanical calculations with machine learning provide powerful tools for exploring wide swathes of chemical compound space. We present our perspective on this
-
Solving a solubilty problem Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-06-08 Gabriella Graziano
Despite their similarity with surfactants, the mechanism by which hydrotropes assist in solubilizing apolar molecules in water is not totally understood. A mechanism is now proposed that identifies apolar interactions as driving forces of hydrotropy, in agreement with a statistical thermodynamic picture.
-
Broadening the scope of biocatalytic C–C bond formation Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-06-03 Lara E. Zetzsche; Alison R. H. Narayan
Enzymes exercise impeccable control over chemoselectivity, site selectivity and stereoselectivity in reactions they mediate, such that we have witnessed a surge in the development of new biocatalytic methods. Although carbon–carbon (C–C) bonds are the central framework of organic molecules, biocatalytic methods for their formation have largely been limited to a select few lyase enzymes. Thus, despite
-
Dial in your dispersity Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-27 David Schilter
One can combine two distinct chain-transfer agents to tune the dispersity of vinyl polymers. The polymer chains remain living and can be transformed into diblock copolymers.
-
Stabilization strategies in biomass depolymerization using chemical functionalization Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-22 Ydna M. Questell-Santiago; Maxim V. Galkin; Katalin Barta; Jeremy S. Luterbacher
A central feature of most lignocellulosic-biomass-valorization strategies is the depolymerization of all its three major constituents: cellulose and hemicellulose to simple sugars, and lignin to phenolic monomers. However, reactive intermediates, generally resulting from dehydration reactions, can participate in undesirable condensation pathways during biomass deconstruction, which have posed fundamental
-
Inverting isomers Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-19 Stephen G. Davey
An unexpected epoxide deoxygenation reaction was observed to occur with inversion of stereochemistry and has enabled development of a method for alkene isomerization.
-
Author Correction: Advancing photosystem II photoelectrochemistry for semi-artificial photosynthesis Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-13 Jenny Z. Zhang; Erwin Reisner
An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.
-
Fluorescent amino acids as versatile building blocks for chemical biology Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-13 Zhiming Cheng; Erkin Kuru; Amit Sachdeva; Marc Vendrell
Fluorophores have transformed the way we study biological systems, enabling non-invasive studies in cells and intact organisms, which increase our understanding of complex processes at the molecular level. Fluorescent amino acids have become an essential chemical tool because they can be used to construct fluorescent macromolecules, such as peptides and proteins, without disrupting their native biomolecular
-
Piecing together a structural puzzle Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-11
Sample preparation and instrumentation for macromolecular mass spectrometry continue to evolve, making the technique more relevant than ever.
-
A controlled attraction Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-07 Gabriella Graziano
Uncharged polymers on the surface of charged colloidal particles can help to control their self-assembly into ordered structures.
-
Helical polymers for biological and medical applications Nat. Rev. Chem. (IF 34.953) Pub Date : 2020-05-05 Thomas Leigh; Paco Fernandez-Trillo
Helices are the most prevalent secondary structure in biomolecules and play vital roles in their activity. Chemists have been fascinated with mimicking this molecular conformation with synthetic materials. Research has now been devoted to the synthesis and characterization of helical materials, and to understand the design principles behind this molecular architecture. In parallel, work has been done
Contents have been reproduced by permission of the publishers.