Chirality: The Molecular Key to Structure, Function and Future Materials
A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Handedness is not a cosmetic molecular detail; it is a hidden lever that controls how matter self-assembles, recognizes, catalyzes, transports, heals and responds to external stimuli. From the twist of a drug molecule that determines receptor affinity and the helical scaffold of a biodegradable gel that releases on demand to the chiral surface that spins electrons or photons, the “left” or “right” choice made at the sub-nanometer scale propagates into the macroscopic properties that we urgently need for next-generation therapeutics, sustainable polymers, quantum devices and adaptive materials.
This Special Issue of Molecules invites the submission of experimental and computational contributions that use chirality, whether intrinsic, induced or engineered, as the decisive design element to create, understand or optimize molecular systems. We welcome studies that achieve the following:
- Uncover structure–function relationships revealed by chiral centers, axes or helices;
- Exploit enantioselective synthesis, catalysis or separation to upgrade molecular complexity;
- Employ chiroptical reporters to map conformational landscapes in biomolecules or soft matter;
- Encode responsive behavior (mechanical, optical, electronic) through chiral motifs;
- Convert renewable or waste streams into chiral, biodegradable or recyclable materials;
- Translate molecular handedness into macroscopic mechanical, conductive or photonic properties.
Share your discoveries, protocols and perspectives to help the research community turn chirality from an elegant curiosity into a practical, universally used molecular key.
Dr. Aras Kartouzian
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- structure–function relations
- chiroptical spectroscopy
- natural products
- enantioselective synthesis
- molecular machines
- origin of life
- optically active materials
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