The field of peptide-based molecular hydrogels has emerged in the last times at the borders of Biomaterials Science and Supramolecular Chemistry. Molecular gels are soft materials formed by self-assembly of low-molecular weight compounds through non covalent interactions and represent an example of the bottom-up hierarchical construction of soft matter in which the information programmed at the molecular level is transferred into the nano- and micro-scale leading to a functional material. In particular, gelators based on small peptides are easy to prepare, have a rich self-assembly behavior – well established for their natural counterparts – and are biocompatible. Additionally, new functional features may emerge after self-assembly such as pKa shifts, new catalytic activity or multivalent recognition among others. Here some recent examples of functional molecular hydrogels with an emphasis on their bioinspired self-assembly and function will be presented.

Peptide-based functional molecular gels

249th National Meeting (2015)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.