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The North American Supramolecular Chemistry (NASC) meetings were established 3 years ago to strengthen the supramolecular chemistry community in North America and to provide a platform for researchers at any stage of their career to present their work and allow network opportunities. NASC 2024 was the third edition of this annual conference and once again showcased the breadth of the field with talks on metal-organic cages and frameworks, anion binding, supramolecular chemistry in space, and many other topics. In this proceedings article, a selection of speakers provides their impression of the NASC 2024 meeting and the field of supramolecular chemistry. 

A metal–organic cage (MOC) is shown to be an efficient molecular sponge for PFOS. A large association constant is observed for the 2:1 PFOS :MOC host–guest complex. Up to 12 equivalents of PFOS per MOC are removed from water. The recycling procedure developed allows for the recovery and reuse of the MOC. 

Boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes bearing a pyridyl moiety have been used as metal ion sensors, pH sensors, fluorescence probes, and as sensitizers for phototherapy. A comparative study of the properties of the three structural isomers of meso-pyridyl-BODIPYs, their 2,6-dichloro derivatives, and their corresponding methylated cationic pyridinium-BODIPYs was conducted using spectroscopic and electrochemical methods, X-ray analyses, and TD-DFT calculations. Among the neutral derivatives, the 3Py and 4Py isomers showed the highest relative fluorescence quantum yields in organic solvents, which were further enhanced 2-4-fold via the introduction of two chlorines at the 2,6-positions. Among the cationic derivatives, the 2catPy showed the highest relative fluorescence quantum yield in organic solvents, which was further enhanced by the use of a bulky counter anion (PF6−). In water, the quantum yields were greatly reduced for all three isomers but were shown to be enhanced upon introduction of 2,6-dichloro groups. Our results indicate that 2,6-dichloro-meso-(2- and 3-pyridinium)-BODIPYs are the most promising for sensing applications. Furthermore, all pyridinium BODIPYs are highly water-soluble and display low cytotoxicity towards human HEp2 cells.