Anion Transport in Lipid Bilayer Membranes Using Halogen Bonds

International audience; The development of ion transport systems employing halogen bonding for function and structure started less than a decade ago. This line of research was motivated by the intrinsically compatible characteristics of this non-covalent interaction with transmembrane ion transport, leading to a number of macrocyclic and supramolecular approaches to be explored and reported. Amidst more elaborated molecular frameworks, simple perfluoro-1-iodoalkanes have conclusively proven the relevance and suitability of halogen bonding towards this functional application. Indeed, the strength and directionality of the halogen bond, added to a hydrophobic scaffold, was sufficient to enable anion binding and transport across a lipid bilayer membrane. Macrocyclic arrays were advanced to demonstrate multitopic binding and transport, further enlarging the possibilities. Finally, ion channels relying on halogen bonding to enable multiion hoping across the membrane have also been reported. These larger structures could be constructed both using covalent and supramolecular approaches and were the most active transporters exploiting halogen bonding.