Self-Assembling Peptide-Appended Metallomacrocycle Pores for Selective Water Translocation

MolPlay: Democratizing Interactive Molecular Simulations and Analyses with a Portable, Turnkey Platform

Computer-based tools for visualizing and manipulating molecular structures in real-time hold immense potential for accelerating research and improving education, but are only used to a limited extent. This paper explores the possibilities of these powerful techniques and presents a classification of common interactive modeling tasks, such as assembly, deformation, sampling of rare events, along with relevant use cases, especially for the study of membranes and membrane proteins. I introduce MolPlay─a platform that provides a ready-to-use software environment with a curated set of hands-on examples to democratize access to interactive molecular simulations and analyses (IMSA). These research tools allow researchers to visualize, manipulate, and study digital models of molecules in real-time and can be started directly from a small, portable storage device. The portable, self-contained nature of MolPlay enables versatile deployment scenarios ranging from outreach to teaching in computer laboratories to facilitating the distribution of research software. Initial tests at an international workshop have shown that MolPlay appeals to different target groups and lowers the access barriers to IMSA. By consolidating more than a decade of expertise into one accessible platform, MolPlay represents a significant step toward broader adoption of these underutilized but powerful computational techniques in education and research.

From Frank-Kasper, Quasicrystals, and Biological Membrane Mimics to Reprogramming In Vivo the Living Factory to Target the Delivery of mRNA with One-Component Amphiphilic Janus Dendrimers

This Perspective is dedicated to the 25th Anniversary of Biomacromolecules. It provides a personal view on the developing field of the polymer and biology interface over the 25 years since the journal was launched by the American Chemical Society (ACS). This Perspective is meant to bridge an article published in the first issue of the journal and recent bioinspired developments in the laboratory of the corresponding author. The discovery of supramolecular spherical helices self-organizing into Frank-Kasper and quasicrystals as models of icosahedral viruses, as well as of columnar helical assemblies that mimic rodlike viruses by supramolecular dendrimers, is briefly presented. The transplant of these assemblies from supramolecular dendrimers to block copolymers, giant surfactants, and other self-organized soft matter follows. Amphiphilic self-assembling Janus dendrimers and glycodendrimers as mimics of biological membranes and their glycans are discussed. New concepts derived from them that evolved in the in vivo targeted delivery of mRNA with the simplest one-component synthetic vector systems are introduced. Some synthetic methodologies employed during the synthesis and self-assembly are explained. Unraveling bioinspired applications of novel materials concludes this brief 25th Anniversary Perspective of Biomacromolecules.