Redox-active host-guest supramolecular assemblies of peptides and proteins at surfaces

Camptothecin-based prodrug nanomedicines for cancer therapy

Camptothecin (CPT) is a cytotoxic alkaloid that attenuates the replication of cancer cells via blocking DNA topoisomerase 1. Despite its encouraging and wide-spectrum antitumour activity, its application is significantly restricted owing to its instability, low solubility, significant toxicity, and acquired tumour cell resistance. This has resulted in the development of many CPT-based therapeutic agents, especially CPT-based nanomedicines, with improved pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles. Specifically, smart CPT-based prodrug nanomedicines with stimuli-responsive release capacity have been extensively explored owing to the advantages such as high drug loading, improved stability, and decreased potential toxicity caused by the carrier materials in comparison with normal nanodrugs and traditional delivery systems. In this review, the potential strategies and applications of CPT-based nanoprodrugs for enhanced CPT delivery toward cancer cells are summarized. We appraise in detail the chemical structures and release mechanisms of these nanoprodrugs and guide materials chemists to develop more powerful nanomedicines that have real clinical therapeutic capacities.

Characteristics and therapeutic applications of antimicrobial peptides

The demand for novel antimicrobial compounds is rapidly growing due to the phenomenon of antibiotic resistance in bacteria. In response, numerous alternative approaches are being taken including use of polymers, metals, combinatorial approaches, and antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). AMPs are a naturally occurring part of the immune system of all higher organisms and display remarkable broad-spectrum activity and high selectivity for bacterial cells over host cells. However, despite good activity and safety profiles, AMPs have struggled to find success in the clinic. In this review, we outline the fundamental properties of AMPs that make them effective antimicrobials and extend this into three main approaches being used to help AMPs become viable clinical options. These three approaches are the incorporation of non-natural amino acids into the AMP sequence to impart better pharmacological properties, the incorporation of AMPs in hydrogels, and the chemical modification of surfaces with AMPs for device applications. These approaches are being developed to enhance the biocompatibility, stability, and/or bioavailability of AMPs as clinical options.

Conditional Copper-Catalyzed Azide-Alkyne Cycloaddition by Catalyst Encapsulation

Supramolecular encapsulation is known to alter chemical properties of guest molecules. We have applied this strategy of molecular encapsulation to temporally control the catalytic activity of a stable copper(I)-carbene catalyst. Encapsulation of the copper(I)-carbene catalyst by the supramolecular host cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) resulted in the complete inactivation of a copper-catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction. The addition of a chemical signal achieved the near instantaneous activation of the catalyst, by releasing the catalyst from the inhibited CB[7] catalyst complex. To broaden the scope of our on-demand CuAAC reaction, we demonstrated the protein labeling of vinculin with the copper(I)-carbene catalyst, to inhibit its activity by encapsulation with CB[7] and to initiate labeling at any moment by adding a specific signal molecule. Ultimately, this strategy allows for temporal control over copper-catalyzed click chemistry, on small molecules as well as protein targets.

Fabrication of Supramolecular Bioactive Surfaces via β-Cyclodextrin-Based Host-Guest Interactions

Supramolecular host-guest interactions provide a facile and versatile basis for the construction of sophisticated structures and functional assemblies through specific molecular recognition of host and guest molecules to form inclusion complexes. In recent years, these interactions have been exploited as a means of attaching bioactive molecules and polymers to solid substrates for the fabrication of bioactive surfaces. Using a common host molecule, β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), and various guest molecules as molecular building blocks, we fabricated several types of bioactive surfaces with multifunctionality and/or function switchability via host-guest interactions. Other groups have also taken this approach, and several intelligent designs have been developed. The results of these investigations indicate that, compared to the more common covalent bonding-based methods for attachment of bioactive ligands, host-guest based methods are simple, more broadly ("universally") applicable, and allow convenient renewal of bioactivity. In this Spotlight on Applications, we review and summarize recent developments in the fabrication of supramolecular bioactive surfaces via β-CD-based host-guest interactions. The main focus is on the work from our laboratory, but highlights on work from other groups are included. Applications of the materials are also emphasized. These surfaces can be categorized into three types based on: (i) self-assembled monolayers, (ii) polymer brushes, and (iii) multilayered films. The host-guest strategy can be extended from material surfaces to living cell surfaces, and work along these lines is also reviewed. Finally, a brief perspective on the developments of supramolecular bioactive surfaces in the future is presented.

A supramolecular approach for versatile biofunctionalization of magnetic nanoparticles

A convenient and versatile approach for biofunctionalization of magnetic nanoparticles was developed based on supramolecular host–guest interaction.

Electrochemically driven host–guest interactions on patterned donor/acceptor self-assembled monolayers

Patterned ferrocene/anthraquinone self-assembled monolayers are selectively oxidised or reduced to locally control the formation of host–guest complexes on the surface.