Thermal and chemical stability of diphenylalanine peptide nanotubes: implications for nanotechnological applications

The diphenylalanine peptide, the core recognition motif of the beta-amyloid polypeptide, efficiently self-assembles into discrete, well-ordered nanotubes. Here, we describe the notable thermal and chemical stability of these tubular structures both in aqueous solution and under dry conditions. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) as well as atomic force microscopy (AFM) revealed the stability of the nanotubes in aqueous solution at temperatures above the boiling point of water upon autoclave treatment. The nanotubes preserved their secondary structure at temperatures up to 90 degrees C, as shown by circular dichroism (CD) spectra. Cold field emission gun (CFEG) high-resolution scanning electron microscope (HRSEM) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) of the peptide nanotubes after dry heat revealed durability at higher temperature. It was shown that the thermal stability of diphenylalanine peptide nanotubes is significantly higher than that of a nonassembling dipeptide, dialanine. In addition to thermal stability, the peptide nanotubes were chemically stable in organic solvents such as ethanol, methanol, 2-propanol, acetone, and acetonitrile, as shown by SEM analysis. Moreover, the acetone environment enabled AFM imaging of the nanotubes in solution. The significant thermal and chemical stability of the peptide nanotubes demonstrated here points toward their possible use in conventional microelectronic and microelectromechanics processes and fabrication into functional nanotechnological devices.     

The self‐assembling zwitterionic form of L‐phenylalanine at neutral pH

The title zwitterion (2S)‐2‐azaniumyl‐1‐hydroxy‐3‐phenylpropan‐1‐olate, C₉H₁₁NO₂, also known as L‐phenylalanine, was characterized using synchrotron X‐rays. It crystallized in the monoclinic space group P2₁ with four molecules in the asymmetric unit. The 0.62 Å resolution structure is assumed to be closely related to the fibrillar form of phenylalanine, as observed by electron microscopy and electron diffraction. The structure exists in a zwitterionic form in which π–π stacking and hydrogen‐bonding interactions are believed to form the basis of the self‐assembling properties.     

Direct observation of the release of phenylalanine from diphenylalanine nanotubes

The core recognition motif of the amyloidogenic beta-amyloid polypeptide is a dipeptide of phenylalanine. This dipeptide readily self-assembles to form discrete, hollow nanotubes with high persistence lengths. The simplicity of the nanotube formation, combined with ideal physical properties, make these nanotubes highly desirable for a range of applications in bionanotechnology. To fully realize the potential of such structures, it is first necessary to gain a comprehensive understanding of their chemical and physical properties. Previously, the thermal stability of these nanotubes has been investigated by electron microscopy. Here, we further our understanding of the structural stability of the nanotubes upon dry-heating using the atomic force microscope (AFM), and for the first time identify their degradation product utilizing time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectrometry. We show that the nanotubes are stable at temperatures up to 100 degrees C, but on heating to higher temperatures begin to lose their structural integrity with an apparent collapse in tubular structure. With further increases in temperature up to and above 150 degrees C, there is a degradation of the structure of the nanotubes through the release of phenylalanine building blocks. The breakdown of structure is observed in samples that are either imaged at elevated temperatures or imaged following cooling, suggesting that once phenylalanine is lost from the nanotubes they are susceptible to mechanical deformation by the imaging AFM probe. This temperature-induced plasticity may provide novel properties for these peptide nanotubes, including possible applications as scaffolds and drug delivery devices.     

Azide Quenching of Singlet Oxygen in Suspensions of Microenvironments of Neutral and Surface Charged Liposomes and Micelles

The azide anion is often used as a physical quencher of singlet oxygen, the important active intermediate in photosensitized oxidation. An observed effect of azide on the rate of a reaction is considered an indication to the involvement of singlet oxygen. In most biological photosensitizations, the light‐absorbing sensitizer is located in a membrane or in an intracellular organelle, whereas azide is water soluble. The quenching it causes relies on a physical encounter with singlet oxygen during the latter's short lifetime. This can happen either if azide penetrates into the membrane's lipid phase or if singlet oxygen is intercepted when diffusing in the aqueous phase. We demonstrate in this article the difference, in liposomes’ suspension, between the effect of azide when using a water‐soluble and membrane‐bound chemical targets of singlet oxygen, whereas this difference does not exist when micelles are used. We explain the difference on the population of sensitizer and target in the liposome vs micelle. We also show the effect that exists on azide quenching of singlet oxygen by electrically charged lipids in liposomes. This is a result of the accumulation or dilution of azide in the debye layer near the membranes’ surface, due to the surface Gouy–Chapman potential.     

Exploring the self-assembly of glycopeptides using a diphenylalanine scaffold

Diphenylalanine, a key building block for organic nanotechnology, forms discrete, rigid and hollow nanotubes that are assembled spontaneously upon their dilution from organic phase into aqueous solution. Here we report the efficient preparation of several S-linked glycosylated diphenylalanine analogues bearing different monosaccharide, di-saccharide and sialic acid residues. The self-assembly studies revealed that these glycopeptides adopted various structures and glycosylation could be a tool to manipulate the self-assembly process. Moreover, the solubility of these analogues was found to be much greater than diphenylalanine, which could open new applications based on these nanostructures.