A Peptide Toolkit for Precision Assembly of Helical Nanoparticle Superstructures

Nanoparticles are a class structural and functional building blocks for the construction of new materials. The properties of these materials depend on the size, shape, and composition of the constituent nanoparticles as well as their 3-D organization within the material. We have introduced and developed peptide-based molecular methods to direct and adjust the structure and properties of helical nanoparticle superstructures. This presentation will describe how and why subtle atomic-level modifications of the peptide constructs can lead to significant structural changes to the helical superstructures, and it will highlight how we can deliberately tune peptide sequence to fine tune structure and properties. In addition, methods for controlling the length and structural stability of the helices will be detailed.