Supramolecular peptide nanostructures: Self-assembly and biomedical applications
Zhen Du,
Baoer Fan,
Qiuju Dai,
Lan Wang,
Jia Guo,
Zushan Ye,
Naifu Cui,
Jie Chen,
Kun Tan,
Ruixin Li,
Wen Tang
Affiliations
Zhen Du
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Baoer Fan
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Qiuju Dai
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Lan Wang
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Jia Guo
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Zushan Ye
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Naifu Cui
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Jie Chen
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Kun Tan
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Ruixin Li
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
Wen Tang
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Functional and Intelligent Hybrid Materials and Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China; Corresponding author.
To mimic proteins, artificial designed self-assembling peptides (SAPs) that form diverse ordered nanostructures have been developed and served in biomedicine fields. In this review, we focus on four types of readily synthesized SAPs, including short aromatic peptides, peptide amphiphiles, amphipathic peptides, and surfactant-like peptides. Governed by multiple non-covalent interactions, sequence-coded and condition-altered self-organization of SAPs are presented, leading to the formation of versatile morphologies. The assembly of SAPs is an adaptable platform to incorporate with multiple bioactive motifs by chemical conjugation and physical encapsulation. These multifunctional SAPs-based nano-systems have demonstrated great potential to realize (i) combination therapies for synergetic anticancer effect, (ii) multimodal tumor imaging, (iii) antimicrobial materials that alleviate the drug-resistance problem, (iv) targeting and responsive hemostasis, and (v) active tissue regeneration. Future endeavor is encouraged to focus on the interactions between assemblies and cells, and the development of multi-component assemblies to facilitate the clinical translation of SAPs.
