Oxidation of sodium cholate catalyzed by Au NPs and chiral selective binding of R- and S-binaphthyl derivatives

Au NPs generated in situ by photochemical reduction method were used as catalysts for the oxidation of sodium cholate . The circular dichroism of the oxidation product of sodium cholate exhibits a positive Cotton effect at 335 nm and an intense negative Cotton effect at 281 nm. Electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectra and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra were performed to characterize the chemical composition of the oxidation product of sodium cholate, revealing that two of the hydroxyl groups were selectively oxidized to oxo groups and the oxidation product is 12-hydroxy-3,7-diketo-cholanic acid (3,7-DKCA). The chiral recognition abilities of the aggregates of 3,7-DKCA were investigated by using planar chiral molecules R- and S-binaphthyl compounds. Compared with sodium cholate, the aggregates of 3,7-DKCA displayed higher chiral selective host–guest binding to the model molecules and the chiral recognition mechanism was clarified.