Trends in Chemistry最新文献

To achieve functionalized liposomes and their expanding applications in assembling artificial cells and solve problems of poor stability and single structure of liposomes, recent progress in state-of-the-art liposomes has employed cholesterol as an ‘anchor’ to enrich phospholipid membranes with modifications. Cholesterol is widely used because of its capacity for robust hydrophobic interactions with phospholipids. Introducing cholesterol into liposomes renders them more similar to cells. This review summarizes the various designs and applications of cholesterol-based anchors in liposomes, including surface macromolecular modification of liposomes to achieve improved properties and functionalization, cholesterol-mediated liposome membrane fusion, and cholesterol-mediated hierarchical construction of liposomes as artificial cell models. These studies guide artificial cells to reveal the behavior of life and wider applications.

Contemporary pedagogical research emphasizes the necessity of outreach events to promote and foster science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. This is vital, both in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and worldwide. Here we describe the creation of ChemCarnival, an annual outreach event at the American University of Beirut (AUB) to encourage STEM enthusiasm in the Lebanese community.

Photosynthetic biohybrid systems (PBS) could efficiently harness solar energy through photosensitizers and facilitate CO₂ fixation via biocatalysts. Enhancing electron generation, transfer, and utilization at the photosensitizer–biocatalyst interface is crucial for the improvement in PBS performance. This forum article evaluates PBS, incorporating diverse photosensitizers and biocatalysts, introducing innovative strategies for enhancing PBS performance.

Nanozymes and their constituent substances have primarily relied on inorganic materials. However, researchers now use organic compounds as base materials to create new nanozymes. This review article comprehensively addresses the advent of organic-material-based nanozymes (organic nanozymes) and their broader applications beyond the traditional biomedical and chemical disciplines. It explores the ability of organic nanozymes to address key obstacles of inorganic nanozymes, demonstrating examples and highlighting advancements. The potential impacts and the enhanced capability of organic nanozymes for broader and sustainable applications are succinctly highlighted, and how organic nanozymes will be actively utilized across various domains is envisioned.

The enantioselective synthesis of atropisomers through organic electrochemistry or photochemistry is a valuable and environmentally sustainable alternative to conventional organic synthesis, which has applications in oxidation, reduction, and redox-neutral transformations. These enantioselective reactions have demonstrated considerable potential for rapidly constructing chiral compounds with molecular diversity and complexity. During the past few years, the enantioselective construction of atropisomers via electrochemical and photochemical reactions has reached an impressive level of sophistication and efficiency and has emerged as a powerful tool in synthesis. Our review aims to highlight the enantioselective synthesis of atropisomers through electrochemical and photochemical methods, utilizing transition-metal catalysis and organocatalysis, alongside pinpointing the limitations of existing techniques and potential future development directions.