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Understanding factors affecting alignment of self-assembling nanofibers patterned by sonication-assisted solution embossing.

ABSTRACT: We recently reported simultaneous self-assembly, alignment, and patterning of peptide amphiphile (PA) nanofibers over large areas by a soft lithographic technique termed sonication-assisted solution embossing (SASE). The present work examines the effect of ultrasonication, channel width, and nanofiber persistence length lambda on the degree of alignment of nanofibers patterned by SASE. Polarized transmission and reflection infrared spectroscopy are used to establish a figure of merit for comparing nanofiber alignment based on a model of the supramolecular structures being composed of oriented beta-sheets. The aligned nanostructures show orientation parameters of up to 0.4, and estimates of the persistence length lambda from atomic force microscopy (AFM) images range from 2.0 to 11 mum depending on the chemical structure of molecules used. The data suggest that stiffer nanofibers, defined as those with longer persistence lengths, may actually align less well due to increased difficulty in cleaving them during the alignment process. Alignment can be enhanced with the addition of ultrasonic agitation and confinement of the self-assembled structures within channels around 400 nm in width.

SUBMITTER: Hung AM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2694235 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Understanding factors affecting alignment of self-assembling nanofibers patterned by sonication-assisted solution embossing.

Hung Albert M AM Stupp Samuel I SI

Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids 20090601 12

We recently reported simultaneous self-assembly, alignment, and patterning of peptide amphiphile (PA) nanofibers over large areas by a soft lithographic technique termed sonication-assisted solution embossing (SASE). The present work examines the effect of ultrasonication, channel width, and nanofiber persistence length lambda on the degree of alignment of nanofibers patterned by SASE. Polarized transmission and reflection infrared spectroscopy are used to establish a figure of merit for compari ...[more]

PMID: 19344162

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Project description:A significant challenge associated with systemic delivery of cationic antimicrobial peptides and polymers lies in their limited hemocompatibility toward vast numbers of circulating red blood cells (RBCs). Supramolecular assembly of cationic peptides and polymers can be an effective strategy to develop an array of antimicrobial nanomaterials with tunable material structures, stability and thus optimized bioactivity to overcome some of the existing challenges associated with conventional antimicrobials. In this work, we will demonstrate the supramolecular design of self-assembling antimicrobial nanofibers (SAANs) which have tunable supramolecular nanostructures, stability, internal molecular packing and surface chemistry through self-assembly of de novo designed cationic peptides and peptide-PEG conjuguates. The interaction of the SAANs with human RBCs was evaluated in a stringent biological assay (beyond a traditional hemolysis assay) where both hemolytic and eryptotic activity were examined to establish a fundamental understanding on the correlation between material structure and hemocompatibility. It was found that although the SAANs showed moderate hemolytic activities, their abilities to induce eryptosis vary significantly and are much more sensitive to the internal molecular packing, supramolecular nanostructure and stability of the nanofiber. Improved hemocompatibility requires PEGylation on stable supramolecular nanofibers composed of highly organized ?-sheet structure while PEG conjugation on weakly packed nanofibers composed of partially denatured ?-sheets did not show improvement. The current study reveals the fundamental mechanism involved in the selective hemocompatibility improvement of the SAANs upon PEG conjugation. The structure-activity relationship developed in this study will provide important guidance for the future design of a broader family of peptide and polymer-based assemblies with optimized antimicrobial activity and hemocompatibility.

Dataset Information

Understanding factors affecting alignment of self-assembling nanofibers patterned by sonication-assisted solution embossing.

Publications

Understanding factors affecting alignment of self-assembling nanofibers patterned by sonication-assisted solution embossing.

Similar Datasets

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