New mechanism to transfer chirality between molecules in the nanoscale field

From left to right , the experts Josep Puigmartí-Luis and Alessandro Sorrenti, from the Faculty of Chemistry and the Institute of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry (IQTC) of the UB. If we compare the right to the left hand, we can see these are specular images —that is, like symmetrical shapes reflected in a mirror— and they cannot superimpose on each other. This property is chirality, a feature of the matter that plays with the symmetry of biological structures at different scales, from the DNA molecule to the tissues of the heart muscle. Now, a new article published reveals a new mechanism to transfer the chirality between molecules in the nanoscale field, according to a study led by the UB lecturer Josep Puigmartí-Luis, from the Faculty of Chemistry and the Institute of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry ( IQTC ) of the UB. Chirality: from fundamental particles to biomolecules Chirality is an intrinsic property of matter that determines the biological activity of biomolecules. "Nature is asymmetric, it has a left and a right and can tell the difference between them. The biomolecules that build up the living matter —amino acids, sugars and lipids— are chiral: they are formed by chemically identical molecules that are the specular images to each other (enantiomers), a feature that provides different properties as active compounds (optical activity, pharmacological action, etc.)", notes Josep Puigmartí-Luis, ICREA researcher and member of the Department of Materials Science and Physical Chemistry.