Watching Molecular Nanotubes Self-Assemble in Real Time.

ABSTRACT: Molecular self-assembly is a fundamental process in nature that can be used to develop novel functional materials for medical and engineering applications. However, their complex mechanisms make the short-lived stages of self-assembly processes extremely hard to reveal. In this article, we track the self-assembly process of a benchmark system, double-walled molecular nanotubes, whose structure is similar to that found in biological and synthetic systems. We selectively dissolved the outer wall of the double-walled system and used the inner wall as a template for the self-reassembly of the outer wall. The reassembly kinetics were followed in real time using a combination of microfluidics, spectroscopy, cryogenic transmission electron microscopy, molecular dynamics simulations, and exciton m

SUBMITTER: Manrho M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10591479 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature