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Updated: Feb 10, 2026

Directed Assembly of Elastin-like Proteins into defined Supramolecular Structures and Cargo Encapsulation In Vitro
Published on: April 8, 2020
Supramolecular arrays by the self-assembly of terpyridine-based monomers with transition metal ions
Ting-Zheng Xie1, Yuchen Yao, Xinyu Sun
1Department of Polymer Science, The University of Akron, Akron, Ohio 44256, USA. newkome@uakron.edu wesdemiotis@uakron.edu.
Abstract:
Hierarchical construction of a highly ordered supramolecular array has been, in general, a challenge due to the complexation of building blocks and the hard-to-control weak interactions. Herein, we present a type of well-ordered nanoribbon, which was self-assembled via shape complimentary and hydrophobic effects from the bowl-shaped supramolecular components, which were synthesized by combining designer terpyridine-based monomers and two different metal ions (Ru2+, Zn2+). Interestingly, switching counter ions or changing monomer concentrations, a transformation between a uniform nanosphere and nanoribbon occurred. This opens a door to fabricate readily tailorable, large-scale, supramacromolecular materials.
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