Self-Assembly of Peptide-based Nanosheets for 2D Nanoarchitectonics

在这个由化学系的大分子，超分子和纳米化学项目资助的项目中，埃默里大学的Vincent Conticello教授正在设计结构定义的，纳米尺寸的二维肽组装体，肽是蛋白质的基本结构构建块。 纳米尺度科学的一个主要挑战是能够完全控制其尺寸，形状和化学成分。 生物学已经表明，肽（化学连接的氨基酸序列）可以组装成一系列明确的结构，因此Conticello教授正在学习如何制造肽的合成版本，并发现它们可以组装成片状结构的规则。 这些相对环境友好的制造方法的发展将促进纳米级组件的设计和合成，用于利用光学，电子，磁性或生物功能的各种应用。为了迎接这一挑战，Conticello教授采用了定义序列和分子结构的合成肽。在给定的结构背景下，分子水平的信息被用来指导高度特异性的分子内和分子间相互作用，促进分子稳定和结构限定的二维组件的自组装。 合成肽结构基序，包括胶原蛋白三螺旋和α-螺旋，正在研究作为创建纳米片组件的构建块。结构表征方法（X-射线纤维衍射，固态NMR光谱，和低温电子显微镜）被用来定义控制二维组件的生长条件。实验条件正在定义，这将促进纳米片组件集成到更复杂的结构中，作为创建功能器件的前奏。 在Conticello教授的指导下，并与参与该项目的研究生一起，计划开展一项外展计划，该计划将招募本科生和高中生在化学，生物学和材料科学的界面上进行这些跨学科研究。此外，埃默里课程订单的一个学期的研讨会会议，埃默里研究人员最近的发现，计划作为一个潜在的可持续的试验连接教师，研究生，博士后和其他材料为导向的调查人员在当地的埃默里社区，从事本科生，以更充分地发展生物分子和材料之间的联系。

In this project funded by the Macromolecular, Supramolecular, and Nanochemistry Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Vincent Conticello of Emory University is designing structurally defined, nanometer-sized two-dimensional assemblies from peptides, a basic structural building block of proteins. A major challenge to science at nanometer scale dimensions is the ability to prepare structures with complete control over their sizes, shapes and chemical compositions. Biology has shown that peptides, chemically linked sequences of amino acids, can assemble into a range of well-defined structures, so Professor Conticello is learning how to make synthetic versions of peptides and discover the rules by which they can be assembled into sheet-like structures. The development of these relatively environmentally benign fabrication methods will promote the design and synthesis of nanoscale assemblies for use in a variety of applications that utilize optical, electronic, magnetic, or biological functions.To meet this challenge, the Professor Conticello employs synthetic peptides of defined sequence and molecular architecture. The molecular-level information is utilized within a given structural context to direct highly specific intra- and inter-molecular interactions that promote self-assembly of thermodynamically stable and structurally defined two-dimensional assemblies. Synthetic peptide structural motifs, including the collagen triple helix and the alpha-helix, are being examined as building blocks for the creation of the nanosheet assemblies. Structural characterization methods (X-ray fiber diffraction, solid-state NMR spectroscopy, and cryo-electron microscopy) are employed to define conditions to control the growth of the two-dimensional assemblies. Experimental conditions are being defined that will promote the integration of the nanosheet assemblies into more complex structures as a prelude to the creation of functional devices. Under the direction of Professor Conticello, and in conjunction with the graduate students involved in this project, an outreach program is planned that will recruit undergraduate and high-school students to work on these inter-disciplinary studies at the interface of chemistry, biology, and materials science. In addition, a one-semester seminar session of the Emory course ORDER, On Recent Discoveries by Emory Researchers, is planned as a potentially sustainable trial to connect faculty, graduate students, post-docs and other materials-oriented investigators within the local EMORY community, to engage undergraduate students in order to more fully develop the connection between biological molecules and materials.