Thiourea-based rotaxanes: anion transport across synthetic lipid bilayers and antibacterial activity against .

We report the synthesis of two rotaxanes (1 and 2) whose rings have appended thiourea units for the selective recognition of Cl anions. Rotaxane 1 transports Cl across synthetic lipid bilayers more efficiently than 2, exhibiting EC values of 0.243 mol% 0.