scholarly journals Sequence-Dependent Nanofiber Structures of Phenylalanine and Isoleucine Tripeptides

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (22) ◽  
pp. 8431
Author(s):  
Qinsi Xiong ◽  
Ziye Liu ◽  
Wei Han
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
Structural Diversity ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Peptide Sequence ◽  
Sequence Dependence ◽  
Resolution Model ◽  
Structure Relationship ◽  
Relationship Of

The molecular design of short peptides to achieve a tailor-made functional architecture has attracted attention during the past decade but remains challenging as a result of insufficient understanding of the relationship between peptide sequence and assembled supramolecular structures. We report a hybrid-resolution model to computationally explore the sequence–structure relationship of self-assembly for tripeptides containing only phenylalanine and isoleucine. We found that all these tripeptides have a tendency to assemble into nanofibers composed of laterally associated filaments. Molecular arrangements within the assemblies are diverse and vary depending on the sequences. This structural diversity originates from (1) distinct conformations of peptide building blocks that lead to different surface geometries of the filaments and (2) unique sidechain arrangements at the filament interfaces for each sequence. Many conformations are available for tripeptides in solution, but only an extended β-strand and another resembling a right-handed turn are observed in assemblies. It was found that the sequence dependence of these conformations and the packing of resulting filaments are determined by multiple competing noncovalent forces, with hydrophobic interactions involving Phe being particularly important. The sequence pattern for each type of assembly conformation and packing has been identified. These results highlight the importance of the interplay between conformation, molecular packing, and sequences for determining detailed nanostructures of peptides and provide a detailed insight to support a more precise design of peptide-based nanomaterials.

Self-assembly of trigonal building blocks into nanostructures: molecular design and biomedical applications

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (31) ◽  
pp. 6739-6752
Author(s):  
Kaiqi Long ◽  
Yuwei Liu ◽  
Yafei Li ◽  
Weiping Wang
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Biomedical Applications ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Structural Characteristics ◽  
Building Blocks

This review introduces trigonal building blocks and summarizes their structural characteristics, self-assembly ability and biomedical applications.

scholarly journals Towards Building Blocks for Supramolecular Architectures Based on Azacryptates

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (7) ◽  
pp. 1733 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Miljkovic ◽  
Sonia La Cognata ◽  
Greta Bergamaschi ◽  
Mauro Freccero ◽  
Antonio Poggi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Conformational Changes ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Water Mixture ◽  
Molecular Systems ◽  
Supramolecular Architectures ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Supramolecular Devices

In this work, we report the synthesis of a new bis(tris(2-aminoethyl)amine) azacryptand L with triphenyl spacers. The binding properties of its dicopper complex for aromatic dicarboxylate anions (as TBA salts) were investigated, with the aim to obtain potential building blocks for supramolecular structures like rotaxanes and pseudo-rotaxanes. As expected, UV-Vis and emission studies of [Cu2L]4+ in water/acetonitrile mixture (pH = 7) showed a high affinity for biphenyl-4,4′-dicarboxylate (dfc2−), with a binding constant of 5.46 log units, due to the best match of the anion bite with the Cu(II)-Cu(II) distance in the cage’s cavity. Compared to other similar bistren cages, the difference of the affinity of [Cu2L]4+ for the tested anions was not so pronounced: conformational changes of L seem to promote a good interaction with both long (e.g., dfc2−) and short anions (e.g., terephthalate). The good affinity of [Cu2L]4+ for these dicarboxylates, together with hydrophobic interactions within the cage’s cavity, may promote the self-assembly of a stable 1:1 complex in water mixture. These results represent a good starting point for the application of these molecular systems as building units for the design of new supramolecular architectures based on non-covalent interactions, which could be of interest in all fields related to supramolecular devices.

Characterization of Hydrophobic Forces for in Liquid Self-Assembly of Micron-Sized Functional Building Blocks

2011 ◽  
Vol 1299 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Gullo ◽  
L. Jacot-Descombes ◽  
L. Aeschimann ◽  
J. Brugger
Keyword(s):  
Atomic Force Microscopy ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
Numerical Study ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Dynamic Simulations ◽  
Hydrophobic Force ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Molecular Arrangement ◽  
Atomic Force

ABSTRACTThis paper presents the experimental and numerical study of hydrophobic interaction forces at nanometer scale in the scope of engineering micron-sized building blocks for self-assembly in liquid. The hydrophobic force distance relation of carbon, Teflon and dodeca-thiols immersed in degassed and deionized water has been measured by atomic force microscopy. Carbon and dodeca-thiols showed comparable attractive and binding forces in the rage of pN/nm2. Teflon showed the weakest binding and no attractive force. Molecular dynamic simulations were performed to correlate the molecular arrangement of water molecules and the hydrophobic interactions measured by atomic force microscopy. The simulations showed a depletion zone of 2Å followed by a layered region of 8Å in the axis perpendicular to the hydrophobic surface.

Self-Assembly Micro-Nanostructures of Discotic Organic Molecules

2013 ◽  
Vol 331 ◽  
pp. 567-571
Author(s):  
Yong Sheng Mi ◽  
Zhou Yang ◽  
Dong Wang ◽  
Peng Xia Liang ◽  
Zhao Kui Jin
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Organic Molecules ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Fluorescence Emission ◽  
Cyclic Voltammogram ◽  
H Nmr ◽  
Ft Ir ◽  
Assembly Behavior ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

A series of discotic organic molecules with different substituents have been successfully synthesized. The structures of these compounds were fully characterized by 1H-NMR, FT-IR and MS. Their optical and electrical properties were investigated by means of Uv-vis absorption, fluorescence emission and cyclic voltammogram. By exploring the self-assembly behavior of different substituted discotic molecules through method of solvent exchange-evaporation, organic micro-nanostructures such as nanoparticles, nanotubes and nanorods were obtained through supramolecular self-assembly. In order to investigate the applications of these discotic organic molecules, the relationship of molecular design, structural design and material properties has been studied based on the experimental work.

scholarly journals Computationally designed peptides for self-assembly of nanostructured lattices

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (9) ◽  
pp. e1600307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huixi Violet Zhang ◽  
Frank Polzer ◽  
Michael J. Haider ◽  
Yu Tian ◽  
Jose A. Villegas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Noncovalent Interactions ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Covalent Modification ◽  
Amino Acid Sequences ◽  
Peptide Sequence ◽  
Self Assembling ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Micrometer Scale

Folded peptides present complex exterior surfaces specified by their amino acid sequences, and the control of these surfaces offers high-precision routes to self-assembling materials. The complexity of peptide structure and the subtlety of noncovalent interactions make the design of predetermined nanostructures difficult. Computational methods can facilitate this design and are used here to determine 29-residue peptides that form tetrahelical bundles that, in turn, serve as building blocks for lattice-forming materials. Four distinct assemblies were engineered. Peptide bundle exterior amino acids were designed in the context of three different interbundle lattices in addition to one design to produce bundles isolated in solution. Solution assembly produced three different types of lattice-forming materials that exhibited varying degrees of agreement with the chosen lattices used in the design of each sequence. Transmission electron microscopy revealed the nanostructure of the sheetlike nanomaterials. In contrast, the peptide sequence designed to form isolated, soluble, tetrameric bundles remained dispersed and did not form any higher-order assembled nanostructure. Small-angle neutron scattering confirmed the formation of soluble bundles with the designed size. In the lattice-forming nanostructures, the solution assembly process is robust with respect to variation of solution conditions (pH and temperature) and covalent modification of the computationally designed peptides. Solution conditions can be used to control micrometer-scale morphology of the assemblies. The findings illustrate that, with careful control of molecular structure and solution conditions, a single peptide motif can be versatile enough to yield a wide range of self-assembled lattice morphologies across many length scales (1 to 1000 nm).

scholarly journals Ultrastable liquid crystalline blue phase from molecular synergistic self-assembly

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Hu ◽  
Ling Wang ◽  
Meng Wang ◽  
Tingjun Zhong ◽  
Qian Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Glassy State ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Functional Materials ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Phase System ◽  
Temperature Range ◽  
Blue Phase ◽  
Blue Phases

AbstractFabricating functional materials via molecular self-assembly is a promising approach, and precisely controlling the molecular building blocks of nanostructures in the self-assembly process is an essential and challenging task. Blue phase liquid crystals are fascinating self-assembled three-dimensional nanomaterials because of their potential information displays and tuneable photonic applications. However, one of the main obstacles to their applications is their narrow temperature range of a few degrees centigrade, although many prior studies have broadened it to tens via molecular design. In this work, a series of tailored uniaxial rodlike mesogens disfavouring the formation of blue phases are introduced into a blue phase system comprising biaxial dimeric mesogens, a blue phase is observed continuously over a temperature range of 280 °C, and the range remains over 132.0 °C after excluding the frozen glassy state. The findings show that the molecular synergistic self-assembly behavior of biaxial and uniaxial mesogens may play a crucial role in achieving the ultrastable three-dimensional nanostructure of blue phases.

Self-assembly and properties of low-dimensional nanomaterials based on π-conjugated organic molecules

2008 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 639-658 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Lv ◽  
Huibiao Liu ◽  
Yuliang Li
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Materials Science ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Supramolecular Systems ◽  
Nanoscale Structures ◽  
Design And Synthesis ◽  
Supramolecular Architectures ◽  
Low Dimensional

Building supramolecular architectures with well-defined shapes and functions is of great importance in materials science, nanochemistry, and biomimetic chemistry. In recent years, we have devoted much effort to the construction of well-defined supramolecular structures through noncovalent forces such as hydrogen bonding, π-stacking, metal-ligand bonds, and hydrophilic and hydrophobic interactions, with the aid of functional building blocks. The morphologies and their physical properties were studied, and new methods for the construction of one-dimensional nanoscale structures have been developed. In this review, we summarize our recent studies on the design and synthesis of the supramolecular systems, as well as the physical properties of nanoscale structures.

Molecular Design of Bioinspired Nanostructures for Biomedical Applications: Synthesis, Self-Assembly and Functional Properties

2016 ◽  
Vol 04 (01) ◽  
pp. 1640003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hesheng Victor Xu ◽  
Xin Ting Zheng ◽  
Beverly Yin Leng Mok ◽  
Salwa Ali Ibrahim ◽  
Yong Yu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Properties ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Biomedical Applications ◽  
Colloidal Stability ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Personal Perspective

Biomolecules are the nanoscale building blocks of cells, which play multifaceted roles in the critical biological processes such as biomineralization in a living organism. In these processes, the biological molecules such as protein and nucleic acids use their exclusive biorecognition properties enabled from their unique chemical composition, shape and function to initiate a cascade of cellular events. The exceptional features of these biomolecules, coupled with the recent advancement in nanotechnology, have led to the emergence of a new research field that focuses on the molecular design of bioinspired nanostructures that inherit the extraordinary function of natural biomaterials. These “bioinspired” nanostructures could be formulated by biomimetic approaches through either self-assembling of biomolecules or acting as a biomolecular template/precursor to direct the synthesis of nanocomposite. In either situation, the resulting nanomaterials exhibit phenomenal biocompatibility, superb aqueous solubility and excellent colloidal stability, branding them exceptionally desirable for both in vitro and in vivo biomedical applications. In this review, we will present the recent developments in the preparation of “bioinspired” nanostructures through biomimetic self-assembly and biotemplating synthesis, as well as highlight their functional properties and potential applications in biomedical diagnostics and therapeutic delivery. Lastly, we will conclude this topic with some personal perspective on the challenges and future outlooks of the “bioinspired” nanostructures for nanomedicine.

A rational molecular design of triazine-containing alkynylplatinum(ii) terpyridine complexes and the formation of helical ribbons via Pt⋯Pt, π–π stacking and hydrophobic–hydrophobic interactions

2017 ◽  
Vol 53 (82) ◽  
pp. 11349-11352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heidi Li-Ki Fu ◽  
Sammual Yu-Lut Leung ◽  
Vivian Wing-Wah Yam
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
The Self ◽  
Π Stacking ◽  
Rational Molecular Design ◽  
Non Covalent Interactions ◽  
Covalent Interactions

The self-assembly of strategically designed triazine-containing alkynylplatinum(ii) terpyridine complexes yielded sophisticated helical ribbons through a balance of multiple non-covalent interactions.

scholarly journals Molecular design of stapled pentapeptides as building blocks of self-assembled coiled coil–like fibers

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. eabd0492
Author(s):  
Yixiang Jiang ◽  
Wan Zhang ◽  
Fadeng Yang ◽  
Chuan Wan ◽  
Xiang Cai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Molecular Design ◽  
Chemical Space ◽  
Coiled Coil ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Coiled Coils ◽  
Computational Method ◽  
Side Chain ◽  
Chain Flexibility ◽  
Self Assembled

Peptide self-assembly inspired by natural superhelical coiled coils has been actively pursued but remains challenging due to limited helicity of short peptides. Side chain stapling can strengthen short helices but is unexplored in design of self-assembled helical nanofibers as it is unknown how staples could be adapted to coiled coil architecture. Here, we demonstrate the feasibility of this design for pentapeptides using a computational method capable of predicting helicity and fiber-forming tendency of stapled peptides containing noncoded amino acids. Experiments showed that the best candidates, which carried an aromatically substituted staple and phenylalanine analogs, displayed exceptional helicity and assembled into nanofibers via specific head-to-tail hydrogen bonding and packing between staple and noncoded side chains. The fibers exhibited sheet-of-helix structures resembling the recently found collapsed coiled coils whose formation was sensitive to side chain flexibility. This study expands the chemical space of coiled coil assemblies and provides guidance for their design.

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