title: Mechanics of single peptide hydrogelator fibrils.
abstract: The rigidity of peptide fibers is essential for their chemical and biological functions, despite that it remains largely unexplored. Here, we present the first direct measurement of the mechanics of individual fibers in peptide hydrogels by AFM imaging and statistical analysis and find that the intermolecular interactions play a considerable role.
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Engineering Technology Research Centre of Environmental Cleaning Materials, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control, Jiangsu Joint Laboratory of Atmospheric Pollution Control, Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, 219 Ningliu Road, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210044, P.R. China. yingliubc@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D055119:Elastic Modulus; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry*; D008422:Materials Testing; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000379:methods; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D015233:Models, Statistical; D057139:Nanofibers / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D013718:Tensile Strength
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels; D010455:Peptides