Self-assembly of peptide nanocapsules by a solvent concentration gradient

• Main Authors: Li, Haopeng, Qian, Xuliang, Mohanram, Harini, Han, Xiao, Qi, Huitang, Zou, Guijin, Yuan, Fenghou, Miserez, Ali, Liu, Tian, Yang, Qing, Gao, Huajian, Yu, Jing
• Other Authors: School of Materials Science and Engineering
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2024
• Subjects: Engineering; Acetone; Targeted drug delivery
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/179274
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Biological systems can create materials with intricate structures and specialized functions. In comparison, precise control of structures in human-made materials has been challenging. Here we report on insect cuticle peptides that spontaneously form nanocapsules through a single-step solvent exchange process, where the concentration gradient resulting from the mixing of water and acetone drives the localization and self-assembly of the peptides into hollow nanocapsules. The underlying driving force is found to be the intrinsic affinity of the peptides for a particular solvent concentration, while the diffusion of water and acetone creates a gradient interface that triggers peptide localization and self-assembly. This gradient-mediated self-assembly offers a transformative pathway towards simple generation of drug delivery systems based on peptide nanocapsules.