Supramolecular hydrogelation triggered by a gold catalyst

Abstract

Supramolecular gels formed by self-assembly of low-molecular-weight gelators have been attracting attention as biomaterials. In particular, various triggers for supramolecular hydrogelation, such as enzymatic reactions, have been developed to selectively induce the formation of gels at targeted sites in vivo. However, there are still limitations to the methods for triggering self-assembly, such as the selectivity of hydrogelation at targeted sites. Here, we report the first example of a low-molecular-weight hydrogelator whose gelation is triggered by catalytic amount of transition-metal complexes. This gelator consists of a substrate structure for a ring-closing reaction catalyzed by gold, and this reaction transforms the morphology of fibrils to induce hydrogelation in the presence of peptide additives. This novel trigger for hydrogelation will expand the applicability of a low-molecular-weight gelator in vivo when used with biocompatible metal catalysts.

Keywords

• Fluorene formation
• Hydrogel
• Gold catalyst
• Self-assembly
• Supramolecular gel