Cyclodextrin-based materials as multi-purpose supramolecular platforms

Giornate Scientifiche di Dipartimento Area della Ricerca CNR di Bologna, 21 – 23 ottobre 2025 CYCLODEXTRIN-BASED MATERIALS AS MULTI-PURPOSE SUPRAMOLECULAR PLATFORMS Marco Agnes,1 Milo Malanga,2 Ilse G. J. Manet 1 1 Istituto per la Sintesi Organica e Fotoreattività (ISOF), CNR, Via Gobetti 101, 40129 Bologna, Italy 2 CarboHyde Zrt., Berlini Str. 47–49, 1045, Budapest, Hungary [email protected] Bridging organic, supramolecular, and photophysical chemistry, our research focuses on leveraging cyclodextrin (CyD) derivatives to create advanced drug delivery systems and sustainable photoinduced catalytic processes in aqueous media. CyDs, biocompatible macrocyclic oligosaccharides with a hydrophilic exterior and a hydrophobic cavity, form host-guest complexes that enhance the stability, bioavailability, and water solubility of hydrophobic drugs when incorporated into water-soluble polymers. CyD polymers, easily synthesized and customizable, offer a unique advantage by hosting various therapeutic agents within their cavities, enabling combination therapies.[1] The main target is to combine standard chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy with novel, orthogonal therapeutic agents able to overcome limitations for example due to the lack of molecular oxygen in the tissues affected by solid tumors (hypoxia). Upon synthesizing the target molecules, covalent link or supramolecular loading into the polymeric matrix is studied thanks to the use of optical steady-state and timeresolved spectroscopies and by NMR. Furthermore, we explore the emerging application of CyD polymers as supramolecular reactors for light-driven catalytic processes, specifically their use as inert supports for the photocatalytic conversion of aromatic substrates into aromatic endoperoxides.[2] Upon complexation of the organic, starting materials in the polymeric CyD-network, new synthetic approaches enabled to achieve photocatalyzed procedures in flow in aqueous environment.[3] Acknowledgements: HORIZON-MSCA-SE-01-01 2022 Bicyclos project #101130235; Fondazione di partecipazione ECOSISTER (ART-ER) Next Generation EU, PNRR-MUR; NextGeneration EU, Mission 4, “Education and Research” - Component 2, “From Research to Business” Investment line 1.2, “Funding projects presented by young researchers”, "ORACLE" project funded in the frame of the call Young Researchers – MSCA 2024. [1] M. Agnes et al., Macromol. Biosci. 2022, 22, 2200090 DOI: 10.1002/mabi.202200090; M. Agnes et al., J. Mater. Chem. B, 2024,12, 7969-7976 DOI: 10.1039/D4TB01165A [2] M. Agnes et al., Chem. Eur. J. 2023, e202300511 DOI: 10.1002/chem.202300511 [3] M. Agnes et al., Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2024, 27, e20240086 DOI: 10.1002/ejoc.202400 1