Author Archive

HOT article: Nanoparticles within liposomes

In this HOT article, the Joester group, show for the first time the synthesis and stabilization of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) nanoparticles in phosphatidylcholine liposomes (vesicles).  There is exactly one nanoparticle per liposome, and the ACC is stable over time (it does not crystallize for at lease 20 h).

The authors have also observed ACC nanoparticles of up to
200 nm in liposomes extruded through a 1 mm pore size membrane.  Showing no sign of faceting or crystallization, these are the largest ACC nanoparticles stabilized by confinement thus far.

The liposomal encapsulation strategies in combination with in situ imaging, scattering, and spectroscopy will aid in characterizing subsequent phase transformations and polymorph selection in the
nucleation and growth not only of calcium carbonate, but also other (bio)-minerals, pharmaceuticals, and proteins.

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In vitro synthesis and stabilization of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) nanoparticles within liposomes
Chantel C. Tester, Ryan E. Brock, Ching-Hsuan Wu, Minna R. Krejci, Steven Weigand and Derk Joester
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1CE05153A

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HOT article: “Beaded rings” for small molecule absorption

MOF structures as ‘beaded’ rings built on a p-hydroxybenzoic acid templateMOF have been much studied due to their potential applications from their excellent physical and chemical properties, however, many are unlikely to realize their potential due to the expense of the starting materials and/or complexity of the synthesis involved.  In this HOT article, Day and co-workers have formed stable cucurbit[5]uril MOF structures as ‘beaded’ rings built on a p-hydroxybenzoic acid template prepared readily by self-assembly as a supramolecular structure that remarkably can be recrystallised from water to form the same stoichiometry and structure as occurs under the initial crystallisation conditions.  Accessible channels have clearly been demonstrated for a group of polar volatile organic molecules with significant absorption selectivity for at least three examples.

Read more about these interesting porous structures for FREE at:

Stable cucurbit[5]uril MOF structures as ‘beaded’ rings built on a p-hydroxybenzoic acid template—a small molecule absorption material
Xing Feng, Kai Chen, Yun-Qian Zhang, Sai-Feng Xue, Qiang-Jiang Zhu, Zhu Tao and Anthony I. Day
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1CE05051F

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HOT Article: Crystal engineering lead molecules in drug design

In this HOT article, scientists from Dublin, Ireland have directed their research towards integrating crystal structure analyses with computational (ab initio) modelling methods and exploring the influence and positional influence of different functional groups e.g. N/F/Cl/Br/I atoms, Me/OMe in semi-rigid drug-like molecules on inter- and intramolecular interactions, conformations and solid-state packing.

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Structural systematics and conformational analyses of a 3 × 3 isomer grid of nine N-(tolyl)pyridinecarboxamides and three chlorinated relatives
Pavle Mocilac and John F. Gallagher
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1CE05169E

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HOT article: Shuttle-like nanorods

In this HOT article, Chinese scientists describe the controlled synthesis of orderly NaLa(MoO4)2 shuttle-like architectures (nanorods Shuttle-like nanorodscomposed of nanoparticles) composed of nanoparticles under hydrothermal conditions.  Ethylene glycol was used as the solvent which can decrease the reaction rate by forming ligand bonds with lanthanide ions and further control the final morphology of the product.  Eu3+ ion was chosen as a structural information probe to obtain more luminescent and phase structure information.

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Synthesis and luminescent properties of NaLa(MoO4)2:Eu3+ shuttle-like nanorods composed of nanoparticles
Mei Yang, Hongpeng You, Yongchao Jia, Hui Qiao, Ning Guo and Yanhua Song
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C0CE00822B

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HOT article: Guest-selective sensors based on porous coordination polymers

In this HOT article, Kitagawa and co-workers describe two isomorphic frameworks, [Zn(thdc)(dpNDI)]n, based on 2,5-thiophenedicarboxylate (thdc) as the topology-directing ligand,  assembled from zinc ions and N,N‘-di(4-pyridyl)-1,4,5,8-naphthalenediimide (dpNDI) as the electron-accepting ligand.  The unique connecting angle of thdc promotes the formation of either a 3D pillared-layer framework or an interdigitated 2D layer framework, which are originally synthesized with terephthalic acid or isophthalic acid, respectively.  In addition, these isomers show different charge-transfer interactions with electron-donating aromatic molecules because of their intrinsic porous structure determined by their topology.  Such a topological design of PCPs can be used in guest-selective sensor materials.

Read more for FREE until 12th May 2011 here:

Control of the charge-transfer interaction between a flexible porous coordination host and aromatic guests by framework isomerism
Yohei Takashima, Shuhei Furukawa and Susumu Kitagawa
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1CE05201B

See also the tutorial review on coordination polymers by Kitagawa:

Dynamic porous properties of coordination polymers inspired by hydrogen bonds
Susumu Kitagawa and Kazuhiro Uemura
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2005, 34, 109-119
DOI:10.1039/B313997M

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HOT article: All things nano

A series of Te-related arrays have been achieved on ITO by a ZnO nanorod templating-reaction method under different etching conditions.

By controlling the structure of the ZnO–CdTe nanocables, such as shell thickness, and the diameter and length of ZnO nanorods, size controllable Te nanotube arrays and Te nanorods-on-CdTe nanotube arrays should be obtained, which can be used for  numerous nanodevice applications, such as gas sensors, field-effect devices, infrared acoustooptic deflectors and solar cells.

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Crystalline Te nanotube and Te nanorods-on-CdTe nanotube arrays on ITO via a ZnO nanorod templating-reaction
Xina Wang, Yeming Xu, Haojun Zhu, Rong Liu, Hao Wang and Quan Li
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1CE00010A, HOT article

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A 3D organopolymolybdate polymer with unusual topology

A 3D organopolymolybdate polymer with unusual topologyA novel POM-based 3D self-penetrating MOF containing Mo–N covalent bond has been isolated under hydrothermal conditions, showing an unprecedented (4,6,6)-connected topology assembled from a 2D self-threading skeleton.

The successful preparation of this species not only opens up a new approach to generate novel high-dimensional POM-based multifunctional materials, but also highlights an intriguing example of chemical topology.

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A 3D organopolymolybdate polymer with unusual topology functionalized by 1,4-bis(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)butane through Mo–N bond
Xiuli Wang, Jin Li, Aixiang Tian, Guocheng Liu, Qiang Gao, Hongyan Lin and Dan Zhao
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C0CE00845A, Communication

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Establishing mechanisms of solid state double [2 + 2] photochemical reactions

A double [2 + 2] photochemical reaction of 1,5-bis(4-pyridyl)-1,4-pentadiene-3-one (1P) was observed with in four co-crystal forms of 1P with the hydrogen bonding template molecule phloroglucinol (PG) or 5-methoxy resorcinol (MR). 1H NMR and the UV-vis spectroscopic studies established a stepwise mechanism for this reaction through the formation of a monocyclobutane intermediate.

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Solid state double [2 + 2] photochemical reactions in the co-crystal forms of 1,5-bis(4-pyridyl)-1,4-pentadiene-3-one: establishing mechanism using single crystal X-ray, UV and 1H NMR
Ramkinkar Santra and Kumar Biradha
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C0CE00612B

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Cover article: Crystal engineering for improved drug performance

Check out the latest cover for CrystEngComm issue 4 published online now:

COVER ARTICLE

CEC issue 4 cover image

Crystalline hydrates and propylene glycol solvates of celecoxib sodium salt (Cel-Na) were prepared and characterized with the aim of improving oral drug absorption by breaking up the H-bonding interactions present in crystals of the poorly soluble marketed form of the drug.

Read more at:
Remenar et al., CrystEngComm, 2011, 13, 1047-1048

DOI: 10.1039/C1CE90004H, Cover

This issue of CrystEngComm is a themed issue focussing on Crystal Growth, guest edited by Professor Jennifer Swift. Other articles in this exciting issue include communications and papers by Lara Estroff, Joanna Aizenberg, Bart Kahr and Allan Myerson. Browse the issue.

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HOT article: Micropeonies from nanocrystals

In this HOT article, in CrystEngComm, Chen and co-workers from Harbin Institute of Technology, China report on the morphology and assembly-controlled synthesis of PbTe 3D nanostructures via a facile solvothermal method. They found that the addition of different amounts of glucose can mediate the nucleation and growth of PbTe, resulting in the formation of 3D architectures from 2D nanosheets and nanocrystals. Other factors affecting the morphology such as the amount of NaOH and the volume ratio of ethanol to water, were  systematically investigated. The electrical conductivity was also dependent on the morphology.

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PbTe hierarchical nanostructures: solvothermal synthesis, growth mechanism and their electrical conductivities
Rencheng Jin, Gang Chen,* Qun Wang, Jian Pei, Jingxue Sun and Yang Wang
CrystEngComm, 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C0CE00455C, Paper

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