On the chemical synthesis of new topological structures

Abstract

The construction of chemical species with topological properties is an area of increasing interest. Numerous such structures have been synthesized in recent years, particularly from DNA, which is a natural synthon for these molecules. Recently, higher-order topological structures have been introduced. These hyper-structures consist of combinations of simple structures, such as a Brunnian Link of Brunnian Links or a Hopf Ring of Hopf Rings, or combinations thereof. In this article, we discuss the possibilities of constructing these hyper-structures with real molecules, particularly emphasizing the tools that result from the double helical structure of DNA.