Tunable self-assembled peptide amphiphile nanostructures

Peptide amphiphiles are capable of self-assembly into a diverse array of nanostructures including ribbons, tubes, and vesicles. However, the ability to select the morphology of the resulting structure is not well developed. We examined the influence of systematic changes in the number and type of h...

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Veröffentlicht in:Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids. - 1992. - 28(2012), 11 vom: 20. März, Seite 5017-22
1. Verfasser: Meng, Qingbin (VerfasserIn)
Weitere Verfasser: Kou, Yingying, Ma, Xin, Liang, Yuanjun, Guo, Lei, Ni, Caihua, Liu, Keliang
Format: Online-Aufsatz
Sprache:English
Veröffentlicht: 2012
Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk:Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Schlagworte:Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Peptides
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:Peptide amphiphiles are capable of self-assembly into a diverse array of nanostructures including ribbons, tubes, and vesicles. However, the ability to select the morphology of the resulting structure is not well developed. We examined the influence of systematic changes in the number and type of hydrophobic and hydrophilic amino acids on the self-assembly of amphiphilic peptides. Variations in the morphology of self-assembled peptides of the form X(6)K(n) (X = alanine, valine, or leucine; K = lysine; n = 1-5) are investigated using a combination of transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering measurements. The secondary structures of the peptides are determined using circular dichroism. Self-assembly is controlled through a combination of interactions between the hydrophobic segments of the peptide molecules and repulsive forces between the charged segments. Increasing the hydrophobicity of the peptide by changing X to a more lipophilic amino acid or decreasing the number of hydrophilic amino acids transforms the self-assembled nanostructures from vesicles to tubes and ribbons. Changes in the hydrophobicity of the peptides are reflected in changes in the critical micelle concentration observed using pyrene probe fluorescence analysis. Self-assembled materials formed from cationic peptide amphiphiles of this type display promise as carriers for insoluble molecules or negatively charged nucleic acids in drug or gene delivery applications
Beschreibung:Date Completed 05.07.2012
Date Revised 20.03.2012
published: Print-Electronic
Citation Status MEDLINE
ISSN:1520-5827
DOI:10.1021/la3003355