Supramolecular Polymers Formed by ABC Miktoarm Star
Peptides
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Abstract
We
report here the design and synthesis of an ABC miktoarm star peptide
connecting through a lysine junction a short peptide sequence and
two hydrophobic but immiscible blocks (a hydrocarbon and a fluorocarbon).
The designed molecule can self-assemble into one-dimensional nanostructures
with a great diversity of kinetically evolving morphologies in aqueous
solution, while molecules that contain only one of the two hydrophobic
blocks form structurally similar filaments. We believe the rich assembly
behavior and morphological evolution are a direct reflection of the
molecular frustration present within the filament core as a result
of the incompatibility of the fluorocarbon and hydrocarbon segments.
Our finding opens new opportunities for creating complex supramolecular
polymers through the architecture design of small molecular building
units