Antagonistic cooperativity between crystal growth modifiers

Wenchuan Ma, James F. Lutsko, Jeffrey D. Rimer () and Peter G. Vekilov ()
Additional contact information
Wenchuan Ma: University of Houston
James F. Lutsko: Université Libre de Bruxelles
Jeffrey D. Rimer: University of Houston
Peter G. Vekilov: University of Houston

Nature, 2020, vol. 577, issue 7791, 497-501

Abstract: Abstract Ubiquitous processes in nature and the industry exploit crystallization from multicomponent environments1–5; however, laboratory efforts have focused on the crystallization of pure solutes6,7 and the effects of single growth modifiers8,9. Here we examine the molecular mechanisms employed by pairs of inhibitors in blocking the crystallization of haematin, which is a model organic compound with relevance to the physiology of malaria parasites10,11. We use a combination of scanning probe microscopy and molecular modelling to demonstrate that inhibitor pairs, whose constituents adopt distinct mechanisms of haematin growth inhibition, kink blocking and step pinning12,13, exhibit both synergistic and antagonistic cooperativity depending on the inhibitor combination and applied concentrations. Synergism between two crystal growth modifiers is expected, but the antagonistic cooperativity of haematin inhibitors is not reflected in current crystal growth models. We demonstrate that kink blockers reduce the line tension of step edges, which facilitates both the nucleation of crystal layers and step propagation through the gates created by step pinners. The molecular viewpoint on cooperativity between crystallization modifiers provides guidance on the pairing of modifiers in the synthesis of crystalline materials. The proposed mechanisms indicate strategies to understand and control crystallization in both natural and engineered systems, which occurs in complex multicomponent media1–3,8,9. In a broader context, our results highlight the complexity of crystal–modifier interactions mediated by the structure and dynamics of the crystal interface.

Date: 2020
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1918-4 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:nature:v:577:y:2020:i:7791:d:10.1038_s41586-019-1918-4

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1918-4

Access Statistics for this article

Nature is currently edited by Magdalena Skipper

More articles in Nature from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().