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Updated: Oct 30, 2025

Formation of Ordered Biomolecular Structures by the Self-assembly of Short Peptides
Published on: November 21, 2013
Diketopiperazine Gels: New Horizons from the Self-Assembly of Cyclic Dipeptides
Marco Scarel1, Silvia Marchesan1,2
1Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences Department, University of Trieste, Via Giorgieri 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy.
Abstract:
Cyclodipeptides (CDPs) or 2,5-diketopiperazines (DKPs) can exert a variety of biological activities and display pronounced resistance against enzymatic hydrolysis as well as a propensity towards self-assembly into gels, relative to the linear-dipeptide counterparts. They have attracted great interest in a variety of fields spanning from functional materials to drug discovery. This concise review will analyze the latest advancements in their synthesis, self-assembly into gels, and their more innovative applications.

