Ioliomics (from aportmanteau ofions andliquids) is the study ofions inliquids (or liquidphases) and stipulated with fundamental differences ofionic interactions.[1] Ioliomics covers a broad research area concerning structure, properties and applications of ions involved in various biological and chemical systems. The concept of this research discipline is related to other comprehensive research fields, such asgenomics,proteomics,glycomics,petroleomics, etc., where the suffix-omics is used for describing the comprehensiveness of data.[2]
The nature ofchemical reactions and their description is one of the most fundamental problems inchemistry. The concepts ofcovalent andionic bonds which emerged in the beginning of the 20th century specify the profound differences between theirelectronic structures. These differences, in turn, lead to dramatically different behavior ofcovalent andionic compounds both in thesolution andsolid phase.[3] In the solid phase, ionic compounds, e.g.salts, are prone to formation ofcrystal lattices; in polarsolvents, they dissociate into ions surrounded by solvate shells, thus rendering the solution highly ionicconductive.[4] In contrast tocovalent bonds,ionic interactions demonstrate flexible, dynamic behavior, which allows tuning ionic compounds to obtain desired properties.
Ionic compounds interact strongly with the solvent medium; therefore, their impact on chemical and biochemical processes involvingions can be significant. Even in the case of simplestions andsolvents, the presence of the former can lead to rearrangement and restructuring of the latter.[5] It is established that ionic reactions are involved in numerous phenomena at the scales of wholegalaxies or single livingcells.[6][7] To name a few, in livingcells, metal ions bind tometalloenzymes and otherproteins therefore modulating their activity;[6]ions are involved in the control of neuronal functioning duringsleep – wakefulness cycles;[8] anomalous activity ofion channels results in the development of various disorders, such asParkinson's andAlzheimer's diseases,[9] etc. Thus, despite the problems associated with the studies on properties and activities of ions in various chemical and biological systems,[1] this research field is among the most urgent ones.
Of special interest are ion-abundant liquid media (such asionic liquids,molten salts, liquidelectrolytes, etc.), which represent “liquid ions” with excellent tunable properties for different applications. The systems are famous for their ability to solvent-solute self-organization phenomena and are often employed inchemistry,biochemistry and pharmaceutical research.[1][10] One of the most important features of ion-abundant liquid media is their huge potential to be fine-tuned. Thus, one can design anionic liquid with virtually any combination of physicochemical or biochemical properties.[11]Research in the area of “liquid ions” is a rapidly developing scientific field, and numerous data on their properties and activities have been accumulated so far.[1][12] Currently, the concept finds applications incatalysis,electrochemistry, analytics,fuel production,biomass processing,biotechnology,biochemistry andpharmaceutics.[1][11][13][14]