If you’ve ever dreamt of IKEA furniture assembling itself magically upon opening the box, then viruses might hold the secret. Self-assembly is crucial for biological structures like proteins, cell membranes, and viruses. Supramolecular chemistry focuses on constructing large molecules from smaller building blocks.
By adjusting polymer attraction strength, scientists can create complexes that respond to environmental changes like adding new chemicals—leading to “smart materials.” However, many aspects of supramolecular chemistry remain a mystery.
In a recent study in Scientific Reports, Osaka University researchers demonstrated how additives can enhance self-assembly of spherical microparticles made from poly(sodium acrylate) super absorbent polymer while controlling the shape of resulting assemblies.
The microparticles featured polymer molecules functionalized with β-cyclodextrin (βCD) or adamantane (Ad) residues but required a critical threshold concentration of 1-adamantanamine hydrochloride (AdNH3Cl) for assembly.
Researchers drew inspiration from biological proteins composed of amino acids that interact through hydrogen bonding or electrostatic forces to determine protein shape. Similar interactions occur in DNA, polysaccharides, and lipids.
“Living organisms are essentially collections of sophisticated supramolecular polymers,” lead author Akihito Hashidzume explains.
Published: 2024-09-12 13:15:02
Source: phys.org