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Self-assembly Peptide Hydrogels for Facilitating Cell Attachment and Outgrowth
Chun-Ting Wang, Shi-Hua He1, Gong Ju*
Institute of Neurobiology, Forth Military Medicine University, Xi'an 710032, China; 1 Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710054, China
Abstract: Rapid development of cell/tissue engineering has underscored the importance of biological matrix scaffolds that can enhance cell attachment， outgrowth， and differentiation. Biocompatible and self-assembling peptide-hydrogels， which contain more than 99% water and meet the criteria for ideal biomaterial matrix scaffold， are thus highly appreciated. These self-complementary peptides contain 50% charged amino acid residues， and are characterized by periodical repeats of alternating ionic hydrophilic and uncharged hydrophobic residuals. Their N-termini can be modified by addition of peptide extensions directly during the solid-phase synthesis， to meet different functional demands such as attachment， outgrowth， as well as targeting of various cell types. In this paper， we summarize the molecular structure， mechanism of self-assembly， and major factors that influence the biological roles of self-assembling peptides， and the prospect of future directions of their designing.
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