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  • Review Article
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Soft and dispersed interface-rich aqueous systems that promote and guide chemical reactions

Nature Reviews Chemistry volume 2, pages 306–327 (2018)Cite this article

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Abstract

Although aqueous solutions are considered to be sustainable, environmentally friendly reaction media, their use is often limited by poor reactant solubility. This limitation can be overcome by converting aqueous solutions into soft, dispersed interface-rich systems such as polyelectrolyte solutions, micellar solutions, oil-in-water microemulsions or vesicle dispersions. All consist of homogeneously distributed dynamic structures that, in a fashion reminiscent of enzymes, provide local environments that are different from the bulk solution. The presence of soft, dispersed interface-rich structures leads to not only selective reaction accelerations but also changes in reaction pathways, whereby chemical reactions are guided towards desired products. Once again, the analogy to enzyme-catalysed transformations is enticing. In this Review, we illustrate the general concepts applied in such systems and illustrate them with selected examples, ranging from enzyme mimics, the preparation of conductive polymers and transition-metal-catalysed organic syntheses on the industrial scale to the chemistry of prebiotic systems.

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Fig. 1: Two key effects that soft, dissolved interface-rich structures may have on chemical reactions in an aqueous solution.
Fig. 2: Soft, dissolved (or dispersed) interface-rich structures that were shown to promote (accelerate) certain chemical reactions.
Fig. 3: Promotion of chemical reactions by dissolved single-chain polymeric nanoparticles in aqueous solutions.
Fig. 4: Alteration of the chemical reaction pathway by catalytically active hyperbranched polymer particles.
Fig. 5: The concept and application of template polymerization.
Fig. 6: Accelerating a hydrolysis reaction in simple micelles.
Fig. 7: Promoting synthetic reactions in micelles.
Fig. 8: Promoting reactions in microemulsions and emulsion-like systems.
Fig. 9: First full assembly of an active pharmaceutical ingredient in water with TPGS-750-M.
Fig. 10: Acceleration of reactions in the presence of cationic vesicles.
Fig. 11: Reaction promotion by zwitterionic vesicles.
Fig. 12: Reaction promotion in bicontinuous cubic phases and on fatty acid vesicles.

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Acknowledgements

Dedicated to P. L. Luisi and F. M. Menger. The financial support from the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) action CM1304 for the stimulating meetings on the ‘Emergence and Evolution of Complex Chemical Systems’ is highly appreciated, as well as the financial support from the Swiss National Science Foundation (project No. 200020_150254), the Polish National Science Center through HARMONIA project No. 2014/14/M/ST5/00030 and the Basque Government (project IT 590–13).

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Nature Reviews Chemistry thanks B. Lipshutz and the other anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland

    Sandra Serrano-Luginbühl & Peter Walde

  2. Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Donostia–San Sebastián, Spain

    Kepa Ruiz-Mirazo

  3. Biofisika Institute (CSIC, UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain

    Kepa Ruiz-Mirazo

  4. Institute of Organic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland

    Ryszard Ostaszewski

  5. Chemical and Analytical Development, Novartis Pharma AG, Basel, Switzerland

    Fabrice Gallou

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Glossary

Dispersed

To be more or less evenly distributed throughout the entire volume considered.

Interface

The surface area of a dispersed entity that is in direct contact with the solution in which the entity is dispersed.

Green industrial processes

Industrial processes that address and follow the guidance of the principles of green chemistry and engineering.

In vivo catalytic activity

The ability to catalyse a particular chemical reaction at the place where the enzyme is localized within a cell (in the case of intracellular enzymes) or in the environment into which it is secreted from cells (the case of extracellular enzymes).

Catalytic triad

A set of three specifically arranged amino acids involved in the catalysis at the active site of certain enzymes.

Soft interface

Fluid in the sense that there is no fixed relationship between nearest-neighbour molecules or between different parts of the molecules constituting the interface.

Dendrimers

Radially symmetric molecules with a well-defined monodisperse structure of tree-like branches.

Amphiphiles

Chemical compounds consisting of ‘water-loving’ (hydrophilic) and ‘fat-loving’ (lipophilic), for example, ‘water-hating’ (hydrophobic), parts.

Pickering emulsions

Emulsions that are stabilized by solid colloidal particles instead of conventional amphiphiles.

Amphiphilic block copolymers

Polymer molecules consisting of adjacent blocks that differ in their constitution and water solubility such that they behave as macromolecular amphiphiles.

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Serrano-Luginbühl, S., Ruiz-Mirazo, K., Ostaszewski, R. et al. Soft and dispersed interface-rich aqueous systems that promote and guide chemical reactions. Nat Rev Chem 2, 306–327 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-018-0042-6

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