Pure Appl. Chem., 2001, Vol. 73, No. 7, pp. 1041-1057
doi:10.1351/pac200173071041
Calixphyrins. Hybrid macrocycles at the structural crossroads between porphyrins and calixpyrroles*
Jonathan L. Sessler**, Rebecca S. Zimmerman, Christophe Bucher, Vladimír Král2, and Bruno Andrioletti
1Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry and the Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, TX 78712, USA; 2Department of Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Chemical Technology, 16628 Prague 6, Technická 5, Czech Republic; 3Laboratoire de Synthèse Organique et Organométallique, Université P. et M. Curie, UMR 7611, Tour 44, 1er Etage, BP 181, 4 Place Jussieu, 75252 Paris Cedex, France
Abstract:
Calixphyrins are a class of hybrid molecules that lie at the structural crossroads between porphyrins and calixpyrroles. Porphyrins, long known for their versatile metal cation coordination chemistry, are macrocycles that contain only sp2-hybridized bridging meso carbon atoms within their framework. Calix[n]pyrroles, on the other hand, are porphyrin analogs that contain pyrroles bridged exclusively by sp3 meso carbon centers, and in recent years have been shown to display remarkable anion-binding properties. Calix[n]phyrins bear analogy to both the porphyrins and calixpyrroles and are macrocyclic analogs that contain a mixture of sp2- and sp3-hybridized meso carbon bridges. This leads to partial interruptions in the conjugation pathway of the molecule, introduces novel structural features, and leads to interesting anion and cation recognition properties. It also allows for modular syntheses. In the present paper, the chemistry of calix[n]phyrins, still at an early stage of exploration, is reviewed.
**Corresponding author.
All articles from the 38th IUPAC Congress/World Chemistry Congress 2001, Brisbane, Australia, 1–6 July 2001.