Protonation-induced conformational change of lipid tails is reported as a novel strategy to render pH-sensitive lipid amphiphiles and lipid colloids.

Cyclohexane-based conformationally controlled ionophores, the emerging new class of molecular switches, provide a new and promising approach to allosteric systems with negative cooperativity. Protonation of trans-2-aminocyclohexanols leads to dramatic conformational changes: due to an intramolecular hydrogen bond, a conformer with equatorial position of ammonio-and hydroxy-groups becomes predominant. Thus, these structures can serve as powerful conformational pH-triggers. The trans-2-aminocyclohexanol moiety has been used for pH-triggered conformational switching of a crown ether and a podand, and their complexes with potassium ion.

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