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Martínez-Orts M, Pujals S. Responsive Supramolecular Polymers for Diagnosis and Treatment. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:4077. [PMID: 38612886 PMCID: PMC11012635 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25074077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2024] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Stimuli-responsive supramolecular polymers are ordered nanosized materials that are held together by non-covalent interactions (hydrogen-bonding, metal-ligand coordination, π-stacking and, host-guest interactions) and can reversibly undergo self-assembly. Their non-covalent nature endows supramolecular polymers with the ability to respond to external stimuli (temperature, light, ultrasound, electric/magnetic field) or environmental changes (temperature, pH, redox potential, enzyme activity), making them attractive candidates for a variety of biomedical applications. To date, supramolecular research has largely evolved in the development of smart water-soluble self-assemblies with the aim of mimicking the biological function of natural supramolecular systems. Indeed, there is a wide variety of synthetic biomaterials formulated with responsiveness to control and trigger, or not to trigger, aqueous self-assembly. The design of responsive supramolecular polymers ranges from the use of hydrophobic cores (i.e., benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide) to the introduction of macrocyclic hosts (i.e., cyclodextrins). In this review, we summarize the most relevant advances achieved in the design of stimuli-responsive supramolecular systems used to control transport and release of both diagnosis agents and therapeutic drugs in order to prevent, diagnose, and treat human diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Silvia Pujals
- Department of Biological Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), 08034 Barcelona, Spain;
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2
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Gallego L, Woods JF, Butti R, Szwedziak P, Vargas Jentzsch A, Rickhaus M. Shape-Assisted Self-Assembly of Hexa-Substituted Carpyridines into 1D Supramolecular Polymers. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2024; 63:e202318879. [PMID: 38237056 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202318879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/06/2024]
Abstract
The extent of the influence that molecular curvature plays on the self-assembly of supramolecular polymers remains an open question in the field. We began addressing this fundamental question with the introduction of "carpyridines", which are saddle-shaped monomers that can associate with one another through π-π interactions and in which the rotational and translational movements are restricted. The topography displayed by the monomers led, previously, to the assembly of highly ordered 2D materials even in the absence of strong directional interactions such as hydrogen bonding. Here, we introduce a simple strategy to gain control over the dimensionality of the formed structures yielding classical unidimensional polymers. These have been characterized using well-established protocols allowing us to determine and confirm the self-assembly mechanism of both fibers and sheets. The calculated interaction energies are significantly higher than expected for flexible self-assembling units lacking classical "strong" non-covalent interactions. The versatility of this supramolecular unit to assemble into either supramolecular fibers or 2D sheets with strong association energies highlights remarkably well the potential and importance of molecular shape for the design of supramolecular materials and the applications thereof.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucía Gallego
- Department of Chemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Joseph F Woods
- Department of Chemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Rachele Butti
- Department of Chemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Piotr Szwedziak
- Centre for Microscopy and Image Analysis, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Vargas Jentzsch
- SAMS Research Group, University of Strasbourg, Institut Charles Sadron, CNRS, Rue du Loess 23, 67200, Strasbourg, France
| | - Michel Rickhaus
- Department of Chemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Organic Chemistry, University of Geneva, 30 quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
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Vleugels MEJ, Bosman R, da Camino Soligo PH, Wijker S, Fehér B, Spiering AJH, Rijns L, Bellan R, Dankers PYW, Palmans ARA. Bisurea-Based Supramolecular Polymers for Tunable Biomaterials. Chemistry 2024; 30:e202303361. [PMID: 38032693 DOI: 10.1002/chem.202303361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
Water-soluble supramolecular polymers show great potential to develop dynamic biomaterials with tailored properties. Here, we elucidate the morphology, stability and dynamicity of supramolecular polymers derived from bisurea-based monomers. An accessible synthetic approach from 2,4-toluene diisocyanate (TDI) as the starting material is developed. TDI has two isocyanates that differ in intrinsic reactivity, which allows to obtain functional, desymmetrized monomers in a one-step procedure. We explore how the hydrophobic/hydrophilic ratio affects the properties of the formed supramolecular polymers by increasing the number of methylene units from 10 to 12 keeping the hydrophilic hexa(ethylene glycol) constant. All bisurea-based monomers form long, fibrous structures with 3-5 monomers in the cross-section in water, indicating a proper hydrophobic\hydrophilic balance. The stability of the supramolecular polymers increases with an increasing amount of methylene units, whereas the dynamic nature of the monomers decreases. The introduction of one Cy3 dye affords modified supramolecular monomers, which co-assemble with the unmodified monomers into fibrous structures. All systems show excellent water-compatibility and no toxicity for different cell-lines. Importantly, in cell culture media, the fibrous structures remain present, highlighting the stability of these supramolecular polymers in physiological conditions. The results obtained here motivate further investigation of these bisurea-based building blocks as dynamic biomaterial.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marle E J Vleugels
- Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Rik Bosman
- Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Piers H da Camino Soligo
- Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Wijker
- Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Bence Fehér
- Laboratory of Self-Organizing Soft Matter, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - A J H Spiering
- Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Laboratory of Self-Organizing Soft Matter, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Laura Rijns
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Riccardo Bellan
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Patricia Y W Dankers
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
| | - Anja R A Palmans
- Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
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Assies L, Mercier V, López-Andarias J, Roux A, Sakai N, Matile S. The Dynamic Range of Acidity: Tracking Rules for the Unidirectional Penetration of Cellular Compartments. Chembiochem 2022; 23:e202200192. [PMID: 35535626 PMCID: PMC9400975 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202200192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Revised: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Labeled ammonium cations with pKa∼7.4 accumulate in acidic organelles because they can be neutralized transiently to cross the membrane at cytosolic pH 7.2 but not at their internal pH<5.5. Retention in early endosomes with less acidic internal pH was achieved recently using weaker acids of up to pKa 9.8. We report here that primary ammonium cations with higher pKa 10.6, label early endosomes more efficiently. This maximized early endosome tracking coincides with increasing labeling of Golgi networks with similarly weak internal acidity. Guanidinium cations with pKa 13.5 cannot cross the plasma membrane in monomeric form and label the plasma membrane with selectivity for vesicles embarking into endocytosis. Self‐assembled into micelles, guanidinium cations enter cells like arginine‐rich cell‐penetrating peptides and, driven by their membrane potential, penetrate mitochondria unidirectionally despite their high inner pH. The resulting tracking rules with an approximated dynamic range of pKa change ∼3.5 are expected to be generally valid, thus enabling the design of chemistry tools for biology research in the broadest sense. From a practical point of view, most relevant are two complementary fluorescent flipper probes that can be used to image the mechanics at the very beginning of endocytosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lea Assies
- University of Geneva Faculty of Science: Universite de Geneve Faculte des Sciences, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, SWITZERLAND
| | - Vincent Mercier
- University of Geneva Faculty of Science: Universite de Geneve Faculte des Sciences, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, SWITZERLAND
| | - Javier López-Andarias
- University of Geneva Faculty of Science: Universite de Geneve Faculte des Sciences, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, SWITZERLAND
| | - Aurelien Roux
- University of Geneva Faculty of Science: Universite de Geneve Faculte des Sciences, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, SWITZERLAND
| | - Naomi Sakai
- University of Geneva Faculty of Science: Universite de Geneve Faculte des Sciences, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, SWITZERLAND
| | - Stefan Matile
- University of Geneva, Department of Organic Chemistry, Quai Ernest-Ansermet 30, CH-1211, Geneva, SWITZERLAND
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Coste M, Suárez-Picado E, Ulrich S. Hierarchical self-assembly of aromatic peptide conjugates into supramolecular polymers: it takes two to tango. Chem Sci 2022; 13:909-933. [PMID: 35211257 PMCID: PMC8790784 DOI: 10.1039/d1sc05589e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Supramolecular polymers are self-assembled materials displaying adaptive and responsive "life-like" behaviour which are often made of aromatic compounds capable of engaging in π-π interactions to form larger assemblies. Major advances have been made recently in controlling their mode of self-assembly, from thermodynamically-controlled isodesmic to kinetically-controlled living polymerization. Dynamic covalent chemistry has been recently implemented to generate dynamic covalent polymers which can be seen as dynamic analogues of biomacromolecules. On the other hand, peptides are readily-available and structurally-rich building blocks that can lead to secondary structures or specific functions. In this context, the past decade has seen intense research activity in studying the behaviour of aromatic-peptide conjugates through supramolecular and/or dynamic covalent chemistries. Herein, we review those impressive key achievements showcasing how aromatic- and peptide-based self-assemblies can be combined using dynamic covalent and/or supramolecular chemistry, and what it brings in terms of the structure, self-assembly pathways, and function of supramolecular and dynamic covalent polymers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maëva Coste
- IBMM, Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, ENSCM Montpellier France
| | - Esteban Suárez-Picado
- IBMM, Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, ENSCM Montpellier France
| | - Sébastien Ulrich
- IBMM, Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, ENSCM Montpellier France
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Casellas NM, Dai G, Xue Y, Vicente-Arana MJ, Ng DKP, Torres T, García-Iglesias M. Porphyrin-based supramolecular nanofibres as a dynamic and activatable photosensitiser for photodynamic therapy. Biomater Sci 2022; 10:3259-3267. [DOI: 10.1039/d2bm00173j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) represents a promising treatment modality for a range of cancers and other non-malignant diseases due to its non-invasive nature arising from the light-dependent activation. However, PDT has...
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