title: A synthetic amino acid residue containing a new oligopeptide-based photosensitive fluorescent organogel.
abstract: A synthetic amino acid (with a stilbene residue in the main chain) containing a tripeptide-based organogelator has been discovered. This peptide-based synthetic molecule 1 self-assembles in various organic solvents to form an organogel. The gel has been thoroughly characterized by using various microscopic techniques including field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-visible and fluorescence spectroscopy, and rheology. Morphological investigations using FESEM and AFM show a nanofibrillar network structure. Interestingly, the organogel is photoresponsive and a gel-sol transition occurred by irradiating the gel with UV light of 365 nm for 2 h as shown by the UV and fluorescence study. This photoresponsive fluorescent gel holds promise for new peptide-based soft materials with interesting applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Chemistry, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata-700032, India.
authors.forename: Dibakar Kumar
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Maiti
authors.forename: Arindam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Banerjee
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000737:chemistry*; D005453:Fluorescence; D005782:Gels; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D009842:Oligopeptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D012212:Rheology; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence; D013056:Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet; D013816:Thermodynamics; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D005782:Gels; D009842:Oligopeptides