Catalytic length-controlled oligomerization with synthetic programmable templates

Abstract

AbstractNature uses templated length-controlled oligomerization to process genetic information. Templates that are DNA and RNA based and fully synthetic have also been developed for preparing unnatural oligomers. However, these reactions require stoichiometric amounts of the template for product formation. Here we report a catalytic macrocyclic template that promotes the oligomerization of a small-molecule substrate with a remarkable degree of length control. The design of the template is based on rigid oligoproline moieties decorated with catalytic sites in a defined spatial arrangement. The dimension of the macrocycle and the number of catalytic moieties determine the number of monomers that are incorporated into the growing oligomer, thus allowing access to specific products with lengths preprogrammed by the template.