In our ChemSci Pick of the Week, Matthew Langton et al report the first example of a halogen bonding (XB) membrane-anchored ion carrier in which transport is facilitated by the exchange of ions between lipid-anchored receptors on opposite sides of the membrane.
Through analysing the transport rates and using asymmetric distributions of relay transporters in the membrane, it was revealed that anion exchange between transporters in the membrane interior was rate-limiting, and faster for chloride than hydroxide, leading to a higher selectivity for Cl− than OH− ; the origin of this selectivity was investigated in detail.
The mechanistic insight provided into the properties governing anion selectivity for both mobile and membrane-anchored carriers has the potential to provide a basis for the design of selective anionophores for future therapeutic applications.
Matthew Langton obtained his DPhil at the University of Oxford, UK, under the supervision of Professor Paul Beer and is now an Associate Professor of inorganic chemistry at the University of Oxford. The Langton research group focuses on synthetic chemistry, working in the areas of supramolecular chemistry, biological chemistry and nanotechnology.
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