Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Shuang Chen, Yongzhuo Liu, Ri Liang, Gaobo Hong, Jing An, Xiaojun Peng, Wen-Heng Zheng, Fengling Song
Summary: Novel acid-activatable self-assembled nanophotosensitizers based on an amphiphilic peptide derivative have been developed, showing specific tumor cell entry and disassembly inside lysosomes, with fluorescence turn-on and photodynamic therapy effect. These smart nanophotosensitizers offer new opportunities for cancer theranostics.
CHINESE CHEMICAL LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Jialin Chen, Wujun Wang, Yue Wang, Xiushuang Yuan, Chengzhi He, Pengfei Pei, Shengdi Su, Weihong Zhao, Shi-Zhong Luo, Long Chen
Summary: Water insolubility is a significant challenge for many small molecule drugs in clinical applications. Two branched amphiphilic peptides (BAPs) were designed using computer-aided methods for drug-loading through peptide self-assembly. The BAPs could self-assemble into nano-fibrils or bilayer delimited nano-vesicles, and showed high drug-loading efficiency and entrapment efficiency. The carriers could prolong drug release and exhibit pH-triggered release. Moreover, they demonstrated increased cytotoxicity against cancer cells, possibly due to their targeting ability towards cancer overexpressed integrins. The designed BAP carriers represent a promising approach for targeted drug delivery and can improve the clinical use of small molecule drugs with poor water solubility.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICS AND BIOPHARMACEUTICS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Shakti K. Maurya, Sushil Swaroop Pathak, Leela S. Panchakarla, Harkesh B. Singh
Summary: In this study, Fc conjugated selenopeptides were synthesized using a modified SPSS protocol, and their self-assembled nanostructures were investigated. The importance of the Fc unit, aromatic moieties, and weak intermolecular interactions on the self-assembled process was revealed through systematic morphological studies.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Xiaosong Le, Tianwen Gao, Li Wang, Feng Wei, Cuixia Chen, Yurong Zhao
Summary: A variety of functional biomaterials with different sizes and morphologies can be created through self-assembly, with a particular focus on amphiphilic peptide-based materials. These peptides can self-assemble into diverse nanostructures, and their formation is governed by a delicate balance of non-covalent interactions. This review highlights recent advances in the self-assembly of two types of peptides, surfactant-like peptides (SLPs) and peptide amphiphiles (PAs), and discusses their applications in various biomedical fields.
CURRENT PHARMACEUTICAL DESIGN
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Saikat Chakraborty, Christian M. Berac, Moritz Urschbach, Daniel Spitzer, Markus Mezger, Pol Besenius, Thomas Speck
Summary: This study investigates the morphologies and assembly kinetics of pH-responsive supramolecular polymers and develops a model to reproduce the experimental observations. The research finds that acidic and basic peptides in aqueous solution exhibit opposite aggregation states at extreme pH conditions and undergo homo-to-copolymer transition in equimolar mixtures.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Tomoyuki Koga, Aika Ikejiri, Nobuyuki Higashi
Summary: In this study, the hierarchical self-assembly and self-sorting of collagen-inspired peptides (CPs) were described. The CPs formed triple helix structures when cooled, which further self-assembled into highly ordered vesicles. Interestingly, the CPs exhibited narcissistic self-sorting behavior during the formation of both triple helix and matured vesicles. Due to the difference in triple helix formation at different temperatures, the CPs discriminated each other and formed distinct foldamers. These findings provide important insights for the design of complex and ordered peptide self-assembly systems with potential applications in nanobiotechnology.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jie Xu, Changzhu Lv, Qiangqiang Shi, Jialin Zhang, Ning Wang, Guoying Zhang, Jinming Hu, Shiyong Liu
Summary: Discrete polymers are a valuable tool for studying chain structure, self-assembly behavior, and functional applications. However, the development of discrete polymers with self-immolative properties is limited. In this study, we synthesized a library of self-immolative oligourethanes through stepwise growth, which exhibited cascade depolymerization and selective cleavage properties. These oligourethanes also displayed different morphologies and morphological transitions in aqueous media and upon thermal annealing.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lan Yang, Xiao He, Zhiying Zeng, Jiakun Tang, Dongmei Qi, Huijie Ma, Hui Chen, Xinghai Ning, Xuli Feng
Summary: This study presents a nucleus-targeted synergistic chemo-photodynamic therapy using the self-assembly of chlorin e6 (Ce6) and doxorubicin (DOX), which demonstrates enhanced cellular uptake and accumulation in the nucleus, leading to improved therapeutic efficacy for cancer treatment. The introduction of clickable dibenzocyclooctyne (DIBO) functionalized lysine (D-K) and crosslinkers enables efficient self-assembly of the nanodrugs, showing great potential for nucleus-specific drug delivery strategies.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Alessandro Marchetti, Alessandro Gori, Anna Maria Ferretti, Daniel Arenas Esteban, Sara Bals, Claudia Pigliacelli, Pierangelo Metrangolo
Summary: Finite 3D structures with controlled morphology can be achieved in the out-of-equilibrium self-assembly of Au NPs using a spherical peptide-gold superstructure (PAuSS) as a template, resulting in a transient 3D-branched Au-nanoshell (BAuNS) stabilized by sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS). The BAuNS dismantles and regresses to PAuSS through equilibrium of SDS concentration gradient over time in the sample solution, causing NP disassembly. The assembly and disassembly of BAuNS promote temporary interparticle plasmonic coupling, enabling reversible and tunable changes in their plasmonic properties, which is highly desirable for the development of optoelectronic nanodevices.
Article
Polymer Science
Thomas J. Neal, Andrew J. Parnell, Stephen M. King, Deborah L. Beattie, Martin W. Murray, Neal S. J. Williams, Simon N. Emmett, Steven P. Armes, Sebastian G. Spain, Oleksandr O. Mykhaylyk
Summary: A series of amphiphilic statistical copolymers were synthesized with varying hydrophilic and hydrophobic components, which self-assembled into well-defined spherical nanoparticles in aqueous solution. The PSC model was used to describe the relationship between copolymer composition and nanoparticle size, while contrast variation small-angle neutron scattering revealed partial phase separation within the nanoparticles. This study demonstrates the potential for using such statistical copolymers to control and predict nanoparticle size in various industrial applications.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Aleksandr Buglakov, Valentina V. Vasilevskaya
Summary: Amphiphilic polymers in mixed solvents can form fibrils and gels through cononsolvency effect. The gelation mechanism is dependent on solvent interactions, and the morphology of the resulting fibrillar gel can be controlled by changing binary solvent composition. This study provides insights into the formation and properties of fibrillar gels, which can be useful for controlling synthetic matrix morphologies in tissue engineering.
JOURNAL OF COLLOID AND INTERFACE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Polymer Science
Parvathy Venu, Rajan Kumar, Roshni J. Chethelen, Raja Shunmugam
Summary: Researchers are exploring the potential of polymer chemistry in therapeutics by designing and synthesizing nanocarriers to address unwanted side effects in conventional polymeric drug delivery. The integration of hydrophobic and hydrophilic components in the system ensures well-organized self-assembled structures for transporting drugs to targeted areas.
JOURNAL OF MACROMOLECULAR SCIENCE PART A-PURE AND APPLIED CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Polymer Science
Thomas Babut, Mona Semsarilar, Marc Rolland, Damien Quemener
Summary: In this study, a waterborne approach was proposed to co-assemble peptide amphiphiles (PA) and polyelectrolytes into porous membranes with nanostructured networks. Various production methods were explored to shape the material and optimize the structure, leading to a membrane material in the ultrafiltration range with a pore radius of about 7.6 nm.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Chengpin Liang, Jielin Chen, Mingqiang Li, Zhilei Ge, Chunhai Fan, Jianlei Shen
Summary: This study utilized the thermal hysteresis method to investigate the self-assembly process of amphiphilic DNA nanostructures. It was found that under different ionic strengths, amphiphilic DNA strands initially formed metastable micelles through an entropy-driven process, which then transformed into amphiphilic tetrahedral DNA frameworks.
CHEMICAL COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Man-Di Wang, Gan-Tian Lv, Hong-Wei An, Ni-Yuan Zhang, Hao Wang
Summary: This study reports a programmable peptide molecule that enables specific and efficient assembly by binding to targeting receptor proteins. By designing different peptide sequences and receptor bindings, it is possible to promote oligomerization and functional regulation of protein complexes.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Cameron J. Shock, Mark J. Stevens, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Issei Nakamura
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY B
(2020)
Article
Polymer Science
Emily Y. Lin, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Robert A. Riggleman
Article
Polymer Science
Jonathan A. Bollinger, Mark J. Stevens, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Editorial Material
Polymer Science
Karen I. Winey, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Benjamin A. Paren, Bryce A. Thurston, Arjun Kanthawar, William J. Neary, Aaron Kendrick, Manuel Marechal, Justin G. Kennemur, Mark J. Stevens, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Karen Winey
Summary: Designing polymers with controlled nanoscale morphologies and scalable synthesis is important for developing fluorine-free materials for proton-exchange membranes. This study focuses on a precision polyethylene with phenylsulfonic acid branches, which demonstrates high proton conductivity and strong nanophase separation. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate the potential of such precise hydrocarbon-based polymers as processible and effective proton exchange membranes.
CHEMISTRY OF MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Emily Y. Lin, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Karen I. Winey, Robert A. Riggleman
Summary: In this study, a theoretical approach was used to investigate the behavior of polymer solutions near solid surfaces in polymer nanoparticle composites. It was found that factors such as solvent quality and surface-fluid interactions significantly affect the adsorption and wetting process of polymers.
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2021)
Article
Polymer Science
Emily Y. Lin, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Robert A. Riggleman
Summary: Recent studies have shown that polymer-nanoparticle composites with ultra-high NP loading exhibit remarkable mechanical properties, and molecular dynamics simulations reveal that changes in polymer dynamics depend on the number of NPs in contact with a polymer segment, demonstrating a high level of dynamic heterogeneity in PNCs with ultra-high NP loading.
Article
Polymer Science
Jason P. Koski, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Summary: Coarse-grained simulations reveal that binary polymer-grafted nanoparticles can form various structures, including double-walled vesicles, in a selective solvent. Whether randomly grafted or Janus-grafted, the polymers phase-separate on the surface of the NP to form distinct structures.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Mark A. Wilson, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Summary: High-pressure storage and cyclic (de)pressurization of hydrogen can cause damage to gas canisters and materials, but adjusting the crosslink density can reduce the risk of damage.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
(2022)
Article
Polymer Science
Matthew Brownell, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Mark A. Wilson
Summary: This study investigates the diffusion behavior of hydrogen gas in EPDM using molecular dynamics simulations, revealing anomalous subdiffusive motion at high pressure and intermediate times. Increasing cross-link density at lower temperatures reduces hydrogen gas localization and cavitation precursors.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Amalie L. Frischknecht, Pieter J. in 't Veld, Igor Kolesnichenko, David J. Arnot, Timothy N. Lambert
Summary: This study compares two cationic polysulfones for their potential application in alkaline zinc-manganese dioxide batteries. Atomistic molecular dynamics simulations reveal well phase separated nanoscale water domains in both polymers, leading to a reduction in hydroxide and water diffusion constants compared to bulk water, explaining the strong exclusion of zincate from the polysulfone membranes observed experimentally.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Polymer Science
Christopher Balzer, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Summary: The structure and morphology of ionic aggregates in ionomer melts significantly affect their ion transport properties. By incorporating polarization in ionomer melts, this study examines the role of polarization in the structure and dynamics of pendant ionomers and compares it to non-polarizable systems. The results show that polarization leads to smaller ionic aggregates and less overall ion structuring. Additionally, the time scale for free counterion diffusion is found to be independent of the morphology under certain conditions.
Article
Polymer Science
A. P. Santos, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Summary: The phase behavior of polymer-grafted nanoparticles (gNPs) in homopolymer matrices has been investigated using coarse-grained simulations. The results show that the phase diagram for gNPs densely grafted with short A chains and blended with long B homopolymer chains is significantly shifted, due to a loss of chain configurational entropy for the long B matrix chains to penetrate the polymer brushes around the gNPs. Adding additional A homopolymer to the polymer matrix increases the miscibility of the gNPs on the gNP-rich side of the phase diagram.
Correction
Polymer Science
A. P. Santos, Amalie L. Frischknecht
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Tong Gao, Cameron J. Shock, Mark J. Stevens, Amalie L. Frischknecht, Issei Nakamura
Summary: This study develops ensemble neural networks (ENN) as computationally fast surrogate models for Stockmayer fluid molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to determine the dielectric constants of polar solvents and NaCl solutions. The ENNs are trained using only 50-times less data compared to MD simulations, yet their predictions using batch normalization or bagging are in good agreement with the full MD results. The ENN methods are capable of extracting reliable values from statistically noisy data.
MRS COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
