title: Tuning the chiroptical and morphological properties of steroidal-porphyrin aggregates: a mechanistic, structural, and MM investigation.
abstract: The aggregation of a steroid-functionalised porphyrin derivative occurs with the formation of J-type chiral species. Spectroscopic and SEM studies indicate that the initial concentration of the macrocycle strongly influences the morphology of the final mesoscopic structures, as a consequence of a change in the mechanistic course of the self-assembly process. Fibrillar structures are obtained at low porphyrin concentration, whereas aggregates of globular shapes are formed on increasing the substrate concentration. Molecular mechanics investigations gave insights into the intimate nature of the driving forces that govern the self-assembly process, pointing out the importance of ring distortion, of intramolecular steroidal OH-π hydrogen bonds, as well as dispersion forces among the tetrapyrrolic platforms.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133, Rome, Italy. monti@stc.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lorecchio
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133, Rome, Italy. monti@stc.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Mariano
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Venanzi
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133, Rome, Italy. monti@stc.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mazzuca
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133, Rome, Italy. monti@stc.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Raffaella
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lettieri
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133, Rome, Italy. monti@stc.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Palleschi
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Purkynje University, Ústí nad Labem, Ceské mládeze 8, 400 96, Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Thu Huong
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Nguyen Thi
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Compounds Chemistry, Institute of Chemical Technology Prague, Technická 5, 166 28 Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Lenka
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cardová
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Compounds Chemistry, Institute of Chemical Technology Prague, Technická 5, 166 28 Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Pavel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Drasar
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133, Rome, Italy. monti@stc.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Donato
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Monti
mesh_terms: D002942:Circular Dichroism; D007700:Kinetics; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D008958:Models, Molecular; D055620:Optical Phenomena; D011166:Porphyrins / Q000737:chemistry*; D013256:Steroids / Q000737:chemistry*; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D011166:Porphyrins; D013256:Steroids