Ditopic molecular architectures for the recognition of anionic species

Dissertation presented to obtain the Ph.D degree in Chemistry

Anions are ubiquitous and very important species in biological, medicinal, industrial and environmental processes. In biology, anions are essential for normal metabolic functions, where their specific recognition, transport and detection play a very important role. On the other hand, the uncontrolled release of anions into the environment poses a significant threat. The development of synthetic receptors capable of sequestering anions should, therefore, provide solutions to a number of problems of current interest. To be suitable for real-life applications, as for instance the detection and quantification of biologically active anions in clinical laboratories or the environmental monitoring and/or removal of pollutants, synthetic receptors need to be able to function in aqueous solution. However, due to the high dielectric constant and good hydrogen bond donor and acceptor capabilities, water is the most challenging medium for anion recognition.(...)

The work described in this thesis was entirely carried out in Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica, Oeiras, Portugal. Pedro Mateus has received financial support from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, ref. SFRH/BD/36159/2007.