18. NUMBER

The composition, presentation, and spatial orientation of extracellular matrix molecules and growth factors are key regulators of cell behavior. Here, we used self-assembling peptide nanofiber gels as a modular scaffold to investigate how fibronectin-derived adhesion ligands and different modes of epidermal growth factor (EGF) presentation synergistically regulate multiple facets of primary rat...

Stimuli-responsive, self-assembling nanomaterials hold a great promise to revolutionize medicine and technology. However, current discovery is slow and often serendipitous. Here we report a multiscale modeling study to elucidate the pH-controlled self-assembly of nanofibers from the peptide amphiphiles, palmitoyl-I-A3E4-NH2. The coarse-grained simulations revealed the formation of random-coil b...

Molecular self-assembly is a powerful technique for developing novel nanostructures by using noncovalent interactions such as hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic, electrostatic, metal–ligand, p–p and van der Waals interactions. These interactions are highly dynamic and are often delicate due to their relatively weak nature. However, a sufficient number of these weak interactions can yield a stable as...

Peptide amphiphiles (PAs) self-assemble into supramolecular nanofiber gels that provide a suitable environment for encapsulation of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic molecules. The PA gels have significant advantages for controlled delivery applications due to their high capacity to retain water, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. In this study, we demonstrate injectable supramolecular PA n...

Spider silk-inspired peptide multiblock hybrid copolymers composed of alternately aligned self-assembling oligopeptides and flexible polypropylene glycol were newly designed for functional nano/microfilm materials.

The construction of functional biomimetic scaffolds that recapitulate the topographical and biochemical features of bone tissue extracellular matrix is now of topical interest in bone tissue engineering. In this study, a novel surface-functionalized electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofiber scaffold with highly ordered structure was developed to simulate the critical features of native bone ...

An injectable hydrogel composed of biocompatible PMPC with PEG-attached self-assembling peptide grafts was newly prepared, and it could be used as 3D cell scaffolds controlled-release applications.