A Visible‐Light‐Regulated Chloride Transport Channel Inspired by Rhodopsin
Jiaxin Quan, Fei Zhu, Manivannan Kalavathi Dhinakaran, Yingying Yang, Robert P. Johnson, Haibing Li
Abstract
Abstract Inspired by the light‐regulating capabilities of naturally occurring rhodopsin, we have constructed a visible‐light‐regulated Cl − ‐transport membrane channel based on a supramolecular host–guest interaction. A natural retinal chromophore, capable of a visible‐light response, is used as the guest and grafted into the artificial channel. Upon introduction of an ethyl‐urea‐derived pillar[6]arene (Urea‐P6) host, threading or de‐threading of the retinal and selective bonding of Cl − can be utilized to regulate ion transport. Based on the visible‐light responsiveness of the host–guest interaction, Cl − transport can be regulated by visible light between ON and OFF states. Visible‐light‐regulated Cl − transport as a chemical model permits to understand comparable biological ion‐selective transport behaviors. Furthermore, this result also supplies a smart visible‐light‐responsive Cl − transporter, which may have applications in natural photoelectric conversion and photo‐controlled delivery systems.