Ionic organic cages

Multiactive-site cooperative tandem catalysis

A charged skeleton and exchangeable counterions create a biomimetic compartmentalized microenvironment, enabling metal clusters, radicals, and enzymes to cooperate synergistically within one cage, overcoming single-site limitations.

Li., Jun · Sun, Jianke

Accounts of Chemical Research 2026

Advantages

Mimics biological compartmentalization

The cage cavity physically separates active sites, preventing mutual interference and enabling ordered tandem reactions.

Electrostatically tunes electronic structure

High-density framework charges modulate both the cavity environment and the electronic structure of encapsulated metal clusters, altering catalytic activity.

Efficient catalysis in water

The charged skeleton imparts broad solubility, particularly in aqueous media, enabling catalysis under mild or physiological conditions.

Applications

• Heterogeneous catalysis：Acts as a recyclable heterogeneous catalyst or support for tandem reactions.
• Electrocatalysis：Electrostatic microenvironment tunes electronic structure of metal clusters for electrocatalysis.
• Single-atom catalysis：Nanocavity encapsulates and stabilizes single metal atoms, preventing aggregation.
• Biomimetic catalysis：Recapitulates biological compartmentalization and cooperativity for efficient catalysis.
• Enzyme catalysis：Water solubility and biocompatibility enable integration with enzymes for cooperative catalysis.