Chiral Amplification of Chiral Porphyrin Derivatives by Templated Heteroaggregation

The solvent-promoted aggregation of amphiphilic porphyrin derivatives 1H 2 and 2H 2, possessing a chiral cationic or anionic functionality, respectively, occurs with the formation of chiral supramolecular structures. If the aggregation of 1H 2 ( P *( + ) in the artwork) is carried out in the presence of preformed aggregates of 2H 2 ( P *(−) in the artwork), a remarkable amplification of the supramolecular chirality is observed ( P *(+) + P *(−), in the picture) as a consequence of an electrostatic templation effect. The templated heteroaggregates resulted also in increased stability toward the presence of an achiral, negatively charged, porphyrin derivative.