Selective recognition of Ca2+ ions using novel polymeric phenols

The research described here elucidates the fundamental interactions of various cations with phenolic moieties constituting the side chains of novel copolymers. The phenolic group was chosen because similar interactions of the tyrosine (Tyr) moiety in proteins with alkaline earth cations are of particular interest for some biochemical systems where both the alkaline earth cations and the aromatic compounds are abundant. The present study has revealed the preferred binding site for our polymeric systems.