Self-assembly of chemically programmed amphiphiles into aqueous nanotubes with a lipophilic lumen

The creation of complex hollow nanostructures with precise control over size and shape represents a great challenge in supramolecular soft materials. Here, we have further developed a bioinspired methodology for the formation of aqueous nanotubes of well-defined dimensions and pore coating through the self-assembly of amphiphiles that are chemically programmed with complementary nucleobases. These nanotubes are endowed with a hydrophobic lumen, whose diameter can be expanded as a function of the monomer length, in which apolar dyes can be efficiently encapsulatedPID2020-116921GB-I00, TED2021-132602B-I00, PID2020-116112RJ-I00, TED2021-131906A-100, PID2021-128313OB-I0