Adaptive chirality of achiral tetraphenylethene-based tetracationic cyclophanes with dual responses of fluorescence and circular dichroism in water

Abstract

Two tetraphenylethene-based tetracationic cyclophanes 1 and 2 were synthesized via a one-step S_N2 reaction without using any template. Based on the fluorescence and rotational conformation of the tetraphenylethene units, these water-soluble cyclophanes exhibited adaptive chirality with dual responses of turn-on fluorescence and induced circular dichroism when combined with nucleotides and DNA in water.