Abstract
Bio-inspired nano-materials can be formed by the ordered assembly of elementary building blocks using recognition modules and structural elements. Among the biological sources, peptides and proteins are of special interest due to their role as major structural elements in all living systems, ranging from bacteria to humans in a continuum of magnitudes, from the nano-scale to the macro-scale. Peptides, as short as dipeptides, contain all the molecular information needed to form well-ordered structures at the nano-scale. Here, in light of the significant advancements in the field of peptide nanostructures in the last few years, we provide an updated overview of this subject. The use of these nanostructures was indeed recently demonstrated in various fields including the design of molecular motors based on nanostructure complexation with a metal-organic framework, the delivery of therapeutic agents, the development of energy storage devices and the fabrication of piezoelectric-based sensors.
Highlights
Introduction a Department of MolecularMicrobiology and Biotechnology, George S
Matsui and co-workers presented yet another group of linear peptide building blocks, the bolaamphiphile peptides that include two amide head groups connected by a hydrocarbon tail group, resulting in two hydrophilic heads that are conjugated through a hydrophobic linker
A density function theory (DFT) study was used to evaluate the basis for the mechanical rigidity of the nanotubes suggesting that despite the porous nature of the crystal lattice, there is an array of rigid nanotube backbones with interpenetrating ‘‘zipper-like’’ aromatic interlocks that result in stiffness and robustness (Fig. 2c and d).[22]
Summary
Among the key building blocks of organic nanotechnology, proteins and polypeptides serve as very intriguing options. Tissues and as key molecular scaffolds of the entire biological world These properties are universal from the macro-scale (e.g., nail, hair, silk, and scaffolds for inorganic materials in bone and dental structures) down to the micro- and nano-scale. Microtubules determine the positions of membrane-enclosed organelles and direct intracellular transport, and the self-assembled actin filaments control the shape of the cell surface and are necessary for wholecell locomotion These cytoskeletal assemblies are found in all forms of life from the simplest bacteria to highly differentiated human cells. This is in marked contrast to nucleic acids, which were shown to possess various activities, including enzymatic ones, but do not serve as structural elements in any biological system. This includes materials that range from the softer materials, like feathers, fur, and human hair, to more rigid materials, like beaks, claws, hooves, and horns
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