title: ATP as building blocks for the self-assembly of excitonic nanowires.
abstract: Supramolecular nanowires are specifically self-assembled from adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) and dichloro-substituted thiacarbocyanine dyes. Spectral blue-shift and induced circular dichroism with exciton coupling are observed upon mixing the dye and ATP molecules in water. These observations indicate the formation of chiral 1/ATP supramolecular assemblies with excitation energy delocalized in the parallel-oriented (H-aggregated) chromophores. Interestingly, formation of H-aggregates is facilitated most in the presence of ATP and not by other nucleotides (ADP or AMP). In electron microscopy, aqueous 1/ATP mixture gives developed nanowires with a minimum width of ca. 10 nm and lengths of several micrometers. The ATP-directed nanowires exhibit reversible thermal self-assembly accompanied by supramolecular thermochromism. This is the first example of ATP-based supramolecular nanoassemblies, and the use of small biomolecules as building blocks for functional supermolecules provides a new perspective in the design of bio-nanomaterials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8581, Japan.
authors.forename: Masa-Aki
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Morikawa
authors.forename: Masakuni
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoshihara
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.forename: Nobuo
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kimizuka
mesh_terms: D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry; D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000379:methods; D002942:Circular Dichroism; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate