Chemistry Class of 1960 Scholars Colloquium: Self-Synthesizing Peptide-based Materials

Professor Gonen Ashkenasy from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev will be presenting a Chemistry Class of 1960 Scholars Colloquium: “Self-Synthesizing Peptide-based Materials” in TCL 202 at 1:10 p.m.

Abstract:  One of the main challenges in contemporary Supramolecular Chemistry research is establishing how interactions and coordinated functions in molecular networks give rise to emergent properties. Recently, while looking for complex network-dependent behavior, we have disclosed the self-synthesizing materials (SSMs), which promote their own formation by accelerating synthesis of their own building blocks or the assembly of their super-structures. The SSMs offer models for understanding how molecular assemblies and cellular machineries had emerged in the origin of life, perhaps one of the most fascinating scientific questions. In line with this research, we have recently described the first peptide-based SSMs, driven by fibril self-assembly and reproduction. We now present a new research direction aiming at the design of functional SSMs and their structure-activity characterization. The following topics will accordingly be discussed: (i) Regio-selective and stereo-selective b-sheet induced replication, (ii) Coupling replication and substrate metabolism within a single network, and (iii) Self-assembly and self-replication of charge-transport fibrils.