Combinatorial Peptide Libraries for Selecting Inorganic-Binding Proteins: A Step in Molecular Biomimetics

AbstractProteins, one of the building blocks in organisms, not only control the assembly in biological systems but also provide most of their complex functions. It may be possible to assemble materials for practical technological applications utilizing the unique advantages provided by proteins. Here we discuss molecular biomimetic pathways in the quest for imitating biology at the molecular scale via protein engineering. We use combinatorial biology protocols to select short polypeptides that have affinity to inorganic materials and use them in assembling novel hybrid materials. We give an overview of some of the recent developments of molecular engineering towards this goal. Inorganic surface specific proteins were identified by using cell surface and phage display technologies. Examples of metal and metal oxide specific polypeptides were represented with an emphasis on certain level of specificities. The recognition and self assembling characteristics of these inorganic-binding proteins would be employed in develeopment of hybrid multifunctional materials for novel bio- and nano-technological applications.

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Factors Affecting Molecular Self-Assembly and Its Mechanism

Scientific Research Journal ◽

10.24191/srj.v9i1.5385 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 43 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hueyling Tan

Keyword(s):

Self Assembly ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Molecular Engineering ◽

Molecular Structures ◽

Polymer Science ◽

New Approach ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Dna Structures ◽

Self Assembling ◽

Wide Range

Molecular self-assembly is ubiquitous in nature and has emerged as a new approach to produce new materials in chemistry, engineering, nanotechnology, polymer science and materials. Molecular self-assembly has been attracting increasing interest from the scientific community in recent years due to its importance in understanding biology and a variety of diseases at the molecular level. In the last few years, considerable advances have been made in the use ofpeptides as building blocks to produce biological materials for wide range of applications, including fabricating novel supra-molecular structures and scaffolding for tissue repair. The study ofbiological self-assembly systems represents a significant advancement in molecular engineering and is a rapidly growing scientific and engineering field that crosses the boundaries ofexisting disciplines. Many self-assembling systems are rangefrom bi- andtri-block copolymers to DNA structures as well as simple and complex proteins andpeptides. The ultimate goal is to harness molecular self-assembly such that design andcontrol ofbottom-up processes is achieved thereby enabling exploitation of structures developed at the meso- and macro-scopic scale for the purposes oflife and non-life science applications. Such aspirations can be achievedthrough understanding thefundamental principles behind the selforganisation and self-synthesis processes exhibited by biological systems.

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Molecular biomimetics: nanotechnology and bionanotechnology using genetically engineered peptides

Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society A Mathematical Physical and Engineering Sciences ◽

10.1098/rsta.2009.0018 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 367 (1894) ◽

pp. 1705-1726 ◽

Cited By ~ 80

Author(s):

Candan Tamerler ◽

Mehmet Sarikaya

Keyword(s):

Self Assembly ◽

Specific Binding ◽

Hierarchical Structures ◽

Functional Materials ◽

Organic Matrix ◽

Genetically Engineered ◽

Molecular Engineering ◽

Inorganic Materials ◽

Hybrid Functional ◽

Molecular Biomimetics

Nature provides inspiration for designing materials and systems that derive their functions from highly organized structures. Biological hard tissues are hybrid materials having inorganics within a complex organic matrix, the molecular scaffold controlling the inorganic structures. Biocomposites incorporate both biomacromolecules such as proteins, lipids and polysaccharides, and inorganic materials, such as hydroxyapatite, silica, magnetite and calcite. The ordered organization of hierarchical structures in organisms begins via the molecular recognition of inorganics by proteins that control interactions and is followed by the highly efficient self-assembly across scales. Following the molecular biological principle, proteins could also be used in controlling materials formation in practical engineering via self-assembled, hybrid, functional materials structures. In molecular biomimetics, material-specific peptides could be the key in the molecular engineering of biology-inspired materials. With the recent developments of nanoscale engineering in physical sciences and the advances in molecular biology, we now combine genetic tools with synthetic nanoscale constructs to create a novel methodology. We first genetically select and/or design peptides with specific binding to functional solids, tailor their binding and assembly characteristics, develop bifunctional peptide/protein genetic constructs with both material binding and biological activity, and use these as molecular synthesizers, erectors and assemblers. Here, we give an overview of solid-binding peptides as novel molecular agents coupling bio- and nanotechnology.

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Factors Affecting Molecular Self-Assembly and Its Mechanism

Scientific Research Journal ◽

10.24191/srj.v9i1.9414 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 43

Author(s):

Huey Ling Tan

Keyword(s):

Self Assembly ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Molecular Engineering ◽

Molecular Structures ◽

Polymer Science ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Dna Structures ◽

Self Assembling ◽

Wide Range ◽

And Control

Molecular self-assembly is ubiquitous in nature and has emerged as a new approach to produce new materials in chemistry, engineering, nanotechnology, polymer science and materials. Molecular self-assembly has been attracting increasing interest from the scientific community in recent years due to its importance in understanding biology and a variety of diseases at the molecular level. In the last few years, considerable advances have been made in the use of peptides as building blocks to produce biological materials for wide range of applications, including fabricating novel supra-molecular structures and scaffolding for tissue repair. The study of biological self-assembly systems represents a significant advancement in molecular engineering and is a rapidly growing scientific and engineering field that crosses the boundaries of existing disciplines. Many self-assembling systems are range from bi- and tri-block copolymers to DNA structures as well as simple and complex proteins and peptides. The ultimate goal is to harness molecular self-assembly such that design and control of bottom-up processes is achieved thereby enabling exploitation of structures developed at the meso- and macro-scopic scale for the purposes of life and non-life science applications. Such aspirations can be achieved through understanding the fundamental principles behind the self organisation and self-synthesis processes exhibited by biological systems.

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Self-Assembly of Peptide Amphiphiles: Molecularly Engineered Bionanomaterials

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.1113.586 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 1113 ◽

pp. 586-593 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Hamizah Shamsudeen ◽

Huey Ling Tan

Keyword(s):

Self Assembly ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Molecular Engineering ◽

Molecular Structures ◽

Significant Advance ◽

Polymer Science ◽

New Approach ◽

Dna Structures ◽

Self Assembling ◽

Wide Range

Molecular self-assembly is ubiquitous in nature and has now emerged as a new approach in chemical synthesis, engineering, nanotechnology, polymer science, and materials. Molecular self-assembly has been attracting increasing interest from the scientific community in the recent years due to its importance in understanding biology and a variety of diseases at the molecular level. In the last few years, considerable advances have been made in the use of peptides as building blocks to produce biological materials for wide range of applications, including fabricating novel supra-molecular structures and scaffolding for tissue repair. Today, the study of biological self-assembly systems represent a significant advance in the molecular engineering and is a rapidly growing scientific and engineering field that crosses the boundaries of existing disciplines. Many self-assembling systems are range from bi-and tri-block copolymers to complex DNA structures as well as simple and complex proteins and peptides. The attractiveness of such bottom-up processes lies in their capability to build uniform, functional units or arrays and the possibility to exploit such structures at meso-and macroscopic scale for life and non-life science applications.

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Synthesis and Properties of Fullerene-Rich Dendrimers

Australian Journal of Chemistry ◽

10.1071/ch09163 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 62 (7) ◽

pp. 605 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Michel Holler ◽

Jean-François Nierengarten

Keyword(s):

Electronic Properties ◽

Main Part ◽

State Of The Art ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Molecular Engineering ◽

Fullerene Derivatives ◽

Current State ◽

Recent Developments ◽

Dendritic Branches ◽

Dendritic Structures

Owing to their peculiar electronic properties, fullerene derivatives are attractive building blocks for dendrimer chemistry. Whereas, for the main part, the fullerene-containing dendrimers reported so far have been prepared with a C60 core, dendritic structures with fullerene units at their surface or with C60 spheres in the dendritic branches have been more scarcely considered. This is mainly associated with the difficulties related to the synthesis of fullerene-rich molecules. In this review, the most recent developments on the molecular engineering of fullerene-rich dendrons and dendrimers are presented to illustrate the current state-of-the-art of fullerene chemistry for the preparation of new dendritic materials.

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Shot-noise simulations of HREM images of polymer crystals

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100153683 ◽

1989 ◽

Vol 47 ◽

pp. 342-343

Author(s):

Philippe Pradère ◽

Edwin L. Thomas

Keyword(s):

Low Dose ◽

Molecular Level ◽

High Resolution Electron Microscopy ◽

Crystal Defects ◽

Inorganic Materials ◽

Photographic Emulsion ◽

Polymer Crystals ◽

Resolution Electron ◽

Recent Developments ◽

Lattice Images

High Resolution Electron Microscopy (HREM) is a very powerful technique for the study of crystal defects at the molecular level. Unfortunately polymer crystals are beam sensitive and are destroyed almost instantly under the typical HREM imaging conditions used for inorganic materials. Recent developments of low dose imaging at low magnification have nevertheless permitted the attainment of lattice images of very radiation sensitive polymers such as poly-4-methylpentene-1 and enabled molecular level studies of crystal defects in somewhat more resistant ones such as polyparaxylylene (PPX) [2].With low dose conditions the images obtained are very noisy. Noise arises from the support film, photographic emulsion granularity and in particular, the statistical distribution of electrons at the typical doses of only few electrons per unit resolution area. Figure 1 shows the shapes of electron distribution, according to the Poisson formula :

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Core-Substituted Naphthalene-diimides (cNDI) and Related Derivatives: Versatile Scaffold for Supramolecular Assembly and Functional Materials

Organic Materials ◽

10.1055/a-1530-0476 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Anurag Mukherjee ◽

Suhrit Ghosh

Keyword(s):

Photophysical Properties ◽

Supramolecular Assembly ◽

Functional Materials ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Short Review ◽

Molecular Engineering ◽

Organic Optoelectronics ◽

Naphthalene Diimide ◽

Naphthalene Diimides ◽

Derivatives Of

Naphthalene-diimide (NDI) derived building blocks have been explored extensively for supramolecular assembly as they exhibit attractive photophysical properties, suitable for applications in organic optoelectronics. Core-substituted derivatives of the NDI chromophore (cNDI) differ significantly from the parent NDI dye in terms of optical and redox properties. Adequate molecular engineering opportunities and substitution-dependent tunable optoelectronic properties make cNDI derivatives highly promising candidates for supramolecular assembly and functional material. This short review discusses recent development in the area of functional supramolecular assemblies based on cNDIs and related molecules.

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Amyloid fibril-directed synthesis of silica core–shell nanofilaments, gels, and aerogels

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1819640116 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 116 (10) ◽

pp. 4012-4017 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Yiping Cao ◽

Sreenath Bolisetty ◽

Gianna Wolfisberg ◽

Jozef Adamcik ◽

Raffaele Mezzenga

Keyword(s):

Amyloid Fibril ◽

Functional Materials ◽

Building Blocks ◽

Inorganic Materials ◽

Core Shell ◽

Shear Stresses ◽

Bending Rigidity ◽

Widespread Application ◽

Nonmonotonic Dependence ◽

Silica Core

Amyloid fibrils have evolved from purely pathological materials implicated in neurodegenerative diseases to efficient templates for last-generation functional materials and nanotechnologies. Due to their high intrinsic stiffness and extreme aspect ratio, amyloid fibril hydrogels can serve as ideal building blocks for material design and synthesis. Yet, in these gels, stiffness is generally not paired by toughness, and their fragile nature hinders significantly their widespread application. Here we introduce an amyloid-assisted biosilicification process, which leads to the formation of silicified nanofibrils (fibril–silica core–shell nanofilaments) with stiffness up to and beyond ∼20 GPa, approaching the Young’s moduli of many metal alloys and inorganic materials. The silica shell endows the silicified fibrils with large bending rigidity, reflected in hydrogels with elasticity three orders of magnitude beyond conventional amyloid fibril hydrogels. A constitutive theoretical model is proposed that, despite its simplicity, quantitatively interprets the nonmonotonic dependence of the gel elasticity upon the filaments bundling promoted by shear stresses. The application of these hybrid silica–amyloid hydrogels is demonstrated on the fabrication of mechanically stable aerogels generated via sequential solvent exchange, supercriticalCO2removal, and calcination of the amyloid core, leading to aerogels of specific surface area as high as 993m2/g, among the highest values ever reported for aerogels. We finally show that the scope of amyloid hydrogels can be expanded considerably by generating double networks of amyloid and hydrophilic polymers, which combine excellent stiffness and toughness beyond those of each of the constitutive individual networks.

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