The first international conference "Supramolecular Chemistry in the Materials Science and Life Sciences" was held at the Exhibition Center of Novosibirsk Akademgorodok in the summer of 2010. It was sponsored by the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine and Nikolayev Institute of Inorganic Chemistry of the RAS Siberian Branch. The forum was attended by more than 60 researchers from France, England, Ukraine and Russia.

Supramolecular chemistry is one of the youngest and rapidly developing fields of knowledge. This term was first introduced by French chemist and the 1987 Nobel Prize winner Jean-Marie Lehn approximately 30 years ago. We can cite his observation: "Just as there exists a field of molecular chemistry based on covalent bonds, so there is also a field of supramolecular chemistry or chemistry of molecular assemblies and intermolecularbonds... Supramolecular chemistry is a chemistry beyond molecules...". In other words, it considers chemical, physical and biological aspects of systems, which are more complicated than molecules and represent a single whole due to intermolecular (noncovalent) interactions. It deals with supramolecular assemblies, which are built naturally from complementary (having geometric and chemical conformity) fragments.

Construction of such highly ordered compounds with the given structure and the "lock-key" principle characteristics from molecular "building blocks" is one of the fundamental problems of this trend. Such formations are characterized by specific spatial arrangement of components, i.e. a special "architecture" giving unique physico-chemical properties to them. Achievements in this branch of knowledge can affect the development of molecular electronics, pharmaceutical chemistry and modeling of biological processes.

In our country attention was focused on supramolecular chemistry only in 2001, when Nikolayev Institute of Inorganic Chemistry of the RAS Siberian Branch held a topical conference, and Novosibirsk State University sponsored a summer school "Hot Spots of Supramolecular Chemistry". For the last 10 years our scientists achieved impressive advances in this field, and it was not incidental that Novosibirsk as a center of supramolecular research was chosen as a place for holding of the first international forum. The most representative delegation came from France, a "homeland" of this new branch of science, and included scientists of world-wide reputation, such as Mir Wais Hosseini, creator of molecular tectonics; Alan Kroll, a prominent expert in molecular biology; Ivan Yuk, the author of unique chemical objects with functions resembling biological objects; Emmanuel Cadeau, who succeeded in designing of inorganic supramolecular systems; Chantai Daniel, known through his works in theoretical quantum calculations; Isabelle Billiard, known as creator of original functional materials, in particular, ion liquids. The Russian school was represented by scientists from Novosibirsk, Moscow and Kazan.

Chairman of the Organizing Committee, Laboratory Head of Ribosome Structure and Function of the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine of the RAS Siberian Branch Galina Karpova, Dr. Sc. (Chem.), noted in an interview with the Nauka v Sibiri (Science in Siberia) newspaper correspondent Yulia Alexandrova, that actually all reports included nontrivial information. For example, Vladimir Fedin, Dr. Sc. (Chem.) (Nikolayev Institute of Inorganic Chemistry) discussed materials based on organometallic coordination polymers possessing stereoselectivity and suitable for fine cleaning of medicinal preparations and other biologically active substances. Mir Wais Hosseini, a disciple of Jean-Marie Lehn, reported on the development of the so-called molecular motors based on porphyrine (natural pigment) and its derivatives, which are of interest for nanotechnology. Corresponding Member of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences Vitalia Kalchenko gave an account on the formation of nitrogen-, sulfur- and phosphorus-containing calixarenes, highly-selective receptors of molecules and ions, almost similar in their properties to natural enzymes used for extraction of radionuclides and other purposes.

As to the "contact" between supramolecular chemistry and life sciences (this subject is in the heading of the conference), there are wide-range and hopeful prospects too, according to Karpova, though research is carried out as yet only on a fundamental level. For example, due to the knowledge of mechanisms of ribosome function (intracellular particle performing protein biosynthesis), we can control this process and work out antiviral preparations. The same ribosome proteins, which form a viral RNA binding site at the initial stage of its translation, can serve as a target material for them. Supramolecular complexes of nucleic acids can be used for the delivery of medicines to a cell in case of treatment of cancer and other diseases. Academician Valentin Vlasov (Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine of the RAS Siberian Branch)* reported on this extremely topical subject, namely, creation of new materials, diagnostic facilities and drug prototypes of direct action based on short synthetic fragments of nucleic acids, i.e. oligonucleotides and their analogs.

The Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the conference took a genuine interest in information of his French colleague Alan Kroll on differences between the human and chimpanzee brain. Researchers found out that in case of homo sapiens the secondary structure of RNA contained a "hairpin", which was missing in the chimpanzee RNA. Presumably, it is just this "hairpin", which adds a more complicated organization to the human brain and possibly is responsible for man's intellect. In this section Karpova noted also the reports of RAS Corresponding Member Olga Dontsova (Moscow State University), staff members of the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine of the RAS Siberian Branch, RAS

* See: V. Vlasov et al., "Gene-Targeted Drugs", Science in Russia, No. 2, 2005.–Ed.

Corresponding Member Olga Lavrik and Dmitry Graifer, Dr. Sc., (Chem.). Olga Dontsova reported on search results concerning the mechanism of telomerase, i.e. ribonucleo-protein complex responsible for maintaining a normal length of telomers (terminal sections of chromosomes needed for DNA metabolism). Despite the fact that today the relation between telomerase activity, cancer growth and cell aging is established, the functioning mechanism of telomerase remains unclear. But this knowledge is necessary for development of selective inactivation of telomerase in tumor cells, which leads to necrocytosis.

For a long time Olga Lavrik was engaged in studies of a thin structure of the supramolecular mechanism responsible for correction of damages in DNA (reparation) and, consequently, for genome stability. She presented to the conference new data on the role of certain cell proteins in these processes. Her colleague Graifer also discussed his study results concerning a thin structure of the key functional center of man's ribosome, where decoding of genetic information takes place. These researchers promote studies in this field to a new level.

Supramolecular chemistry is an interdisciplinary field of natural sciences, which develops on the junction of several sciences, namely, chemistry, biology, physics and informatics. The Novosibirsk forum was conceived as a way of establishing a bridge between these different sciences. However, as Karpova noted, it was not the only purpose of this conference. Such forums give birth to joint projects. In reality, foreign and Russian colleagues got interested in some works of the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine of the RAS Siberian Branch. In particular, contacts were established with the laboratories of nucleic acid biochemistry, RNA chemistry and ribosome structure and function. Participation of young researchers in the conference is another positive factor (they made up about 25 percent of the whole audience). It was very important for them to get themselves familiar with scientists of world-wide reputation and find out how supramolecular chemistry is developing today.

Yu. Alexandrova, "Chemistry Beyond the Scope of Molecule ", Nauka v Sibiri, No. 28-29, 2010

Photos from Nauka v Sibiri newspaper

Prepared by Marina KHALIZEVA