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A simple, low molecular weight camptothecin-lysine conjugate is reported to self-assemble into nanotubes with diameters of 70-100nm and a drug loading level of 60.5%. The nanotubes exhibited promising in vitro cytotoxicity against cancer cell lines A549, NCI-H460 and NCI-H23. The release of active camptothecin was highly dependent on conjugate concentration, temperature and pH of the solution.

The self-assembly and photo-crosslinking of a lysine dipeptide functionalized with 7-(diethylamino)-3-coumarin carboxylic acid (7-DAC) is described. Self-assembly of the dipeptide in water and PBS produces a hydrogel comprised of uniform, micrometer length nanofibers. Irradiation of the nanofibers at 365 nm induces dimerization of the coumarin groups, which crosslinks and stabilizes the noncovalent nanofibers and enhances the mechanical properties.

S)-Camptothecin (CPT)-conjugated dipep- tides are reported that preassemble into nanotubes with diameters ranging from 80-120 nm. These nanoassemblies maintain a high (~ 47 %) drug loading and exhibit greater drug stability (i.e., resistance to lactone hydrolysis), and consequently greater efficacy against several human cancer cells (HT-29, A549, H460, and H23) in vitro com- pared with the clinically used prodrug irinotecan. A key and defining feature of this system is the use of the CPT- conjugated dipeptide as both the drug and precursor to the nanostructured carrier, which simplifies the overall fabrication process.

The construction of an n-p heterojunction through the self-assembly of a dyad based on tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP) and 1,4,5,8-naphthalenedimide (NDI) (1) is described. Proton transfer from the lysine head group of 1 to the porphyrin ring occurs concomitantly with self-assembly into 1D nanorods in CHCl3. TEM and AFM studies showed that the nanorods are formed by the lateral and vertical fusion of multilameller vesicles into networks and hollow ribbons, respectively. These intermediate structures transitioned to nanorods over the course of 4-6 days. Time-resolved spectroscopy revealed that photoinduced charge separation occurs with rate constants that depend on the nature of the aggregation.

An efficient functionalization of aromatic main-chain polymers was established using a combination of iridium-catalyzed borylation of aromatic C–H bonds and the Suzuki–Miyaura coupling reaction. Comparative studies of various iridium catalysts and borylation reagents show that [Ir(OMe)(COD)]2 is significantly more active than [IrCl(COD)]2, and bis(pinacolato)diboron induces higher efficiency than pinacolborane. The regioselectivity of the borylation was investigated using model compounds that mimic the repeating unit structure of poly(arylene ether sulfone). The C–H bonds of the sulfone model compound were more reactive than those of the bisphenol model compound, and the borylation occurred preferentially at the meta position to the sulfone moiety owing to steric hindrance and electronic effects. The glass transition temperature of the borylated polymer increases with increasing concentration of pinacolboronic ester group. The pinacolboronic ester group could be conveniently converted to boronic acid [B(O...

The self-assembly of bolaamphiphile 1 into nanotubes containing a nanostructured electron donor/acceptor heterojunction is reported. In 10% MeOH/H(2)O, the tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP) and 1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarboxylic acid diimide chromophores engage in strong J-type π-π interactions within monolayer rings that further stack into the nanotube assemblies. In 10% MeOH/H(2)O at pH 1 or 11 or in pure MeOH, assembly is driven exclusively by the TPP ring, leading to the formation of nonspecific, unstructured aggregates. Steady-state, time-resolved fluorescence and femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed a strong dependence of the fluorescence decay and electron-transfer/charge-recombination time constants on the nature of the assemblies. These studies highlight the importance of local nanostructure in determining the photophysical properties of optoelectronic materials.

This work describes a strategy to create terthiophene (3T)–naphthalenediimide (NDI) nanostructures via the β-sheet self-assembly of a functionalized dipeptide. The dipeptide assembles into 1D nanof...

Cellulose nitrate (CN) composite membranes, containing cobalt porphyrin (CoP) complexes self-assembled within nanometer-sized rhenium clusters (ReCoP), have been prepared and their oxygen and nitrogen gas permeabilities were analyzed. The solubility of ReCoP and the characteristics of the corresponding composite membranes were analyzed using a Cahn microbalance, FT-IR spectroscopy, wide-angle X-ray scattering, and differential scanning calorimetry. The nitrogen permeability through the CN composite membranes decreased upon addition of ReCoP and CoP, which implies that the presence of these oxygen carrier complexes affects the structure of the polymer matrix. The oxygen permeability through the composite membranes containing small quantities of ReCoP decreased, but it increased upon increasing the concentration. The oxygen gas transport was affected by the matrix at low ReCoP concentrations, but higher concentrations of ReCoP increased the oxygen permeability as a result of its reversible and specific interactions with oxygen, effectively realizing ReCoP carrier-mediated oxygen transport.

The self-assembly of small molecules provides a potentially powerful method to create functional nanomaterials for many applications ranging from optoelectronics to oncology. However, the design of well-defined nanostructures via molecular assembly is a highly empirical process, which severely hampers efforts to create functional nanostructures using this method. In this review, we describe a simple strategy to control the assembly of functionalized peptides by balancing attractive hydrophobic effects that drive assembly with opposing electrostatic repulsions. Extended π-π contacts are created in the nanostructures when assembly is driven by π-stacking interactions among chromophores that are appended to the peptide. The formation of insoluble β-sheet aggregates are mitigated by incorporating charged side-chains capable of attenuating the assembly process. Although the application of this approach to the assembly of organic semiconductors is described, we expect this strategy to be effective for many other functional organic materials.