Fabrication of Propeller-Shaped Supra-amphiphile for Construction of Enzyme-Responsive Fluorescent Vesicles.
Propeller-shaped molecules have been recognized to display fantastic AIE (aggregation induced emission), but they can hardly self-assemble into nanostructures. Herein, we for the first time report that ionic complexation between a water-soluble tetrapheneyl derivative and an enzyme substrate in aqueous media produces a propeller-shaped supra-amphiphile that self-assembles into enzyme responsive fluorescent vesicles. The supra-amphiphile was fabricated upon complexation between a water-soluble propeller-shaped AIE luminogen TPE-BPA and myristoylcholine chloride (MChCl) in aqueous media. MChCl filled in the intramolecular voids of propeller-shaped TPE-BPA upon supra-amphiphile formation, which endows the supra-amphiphile superior self-assembling ability to the component molecules thus leading to the formation of fluorescent vesicles. Because MChCl is the substrate of cholinesterases, the vesicles dissemble in the presence of cholinesterases, and the fluorescent intensity can be correlated to the level of enzymes. The resulting fluorescent vesicles may be used to recognize the site of Alzheimer's disease, to encapsulate the enzyme inhibitor, and to release the inhibitor at the disease site.
Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, China.
Jie
J
Li
Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, China.
Kaerdun
K
Liu
Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing, China.
Yuchun
Y
Han
Department of Chemistry, Hong Kong Branch of Chinese National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration & Reconstruction, The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology , Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China.
Ben Zhong
BZ
Tang
Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, China.
Jianbin
J
Huang
Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, China.
Yun
Y
Yan
AIE; enzyme-responsive; fluorescent vesicle; self-assembly; supra-amphiphile