title: Tetrapeptide-based hydrogels: for encapsulation and slow release of an anticancer drug at physiological pH.
abstract: Here, we report two synthetic oligopeptide-based, thermoreversible, pH-sensitive hydrogels. In gel phase, these self-assembling tetrapeptides form a long interconnected nanofibrilar network structure, as is evident from various microscopic techniques, including field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). FTIR, circular dichroism, and wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) favor an antiparallel beta-sheet structure of these gelators in the gel state. Finally, these hydrogels have been utilized for entrapment and slow release of an anticancer drug doxorubicin at physiological pH, promising their future application as a drug delivery vehicle.
authors.affiliation: Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Biological Chemistry Department, Jadavpur, Kolkata-700032, India.
authors.forename: Jishu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Naskar
authors.forename: Goutam
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Palui
authors.forename: Arindam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Banerjee
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002942:Circular Dichroism / Q000379:methods; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004337:Drug Carriers; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D015195:Drug Design; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000379:methods; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission / Q000379:methods; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared / Q000379:methods; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D004337:Drug Carriers; D020100:Hydrogels; D010455:Peptides; D004317:Doxorubicin