Macromolecules, Vol.45, No.18, 7350-7355, 2012
Nanorods Formed from a New Class of Peptidomimetics
Although peptide amphiphiles have been explored as nanomaterials for different applications, nanostructures formed by hierarchical molecular assembly of sequence-specific peptidomimetics are much less developed. Such protein-like nanomaterials could enhance the current application of peptide-based amphiphiles by enriching the diversity of nanostructures, increasing in vivo stability for biomedical applications, and facilitating the understanding of biomacromolecular self-assembly. Herein we present a biomimetic gamma-AApeptide amphiphile which forms nanorods. Our results demonstrate the capability of gamma-AApeptide amphiphiles as a potential scaffold for the preparation of biomimetic and bioinspired nanostructures. The programmability and biocompatibility of gamma-AApeptides could lead to novel nanomaterials for a wide variety of applications.