Self-assembly of dipeptide nanotubes constituted by (S,S) beta-diarylaminoacid and (L)-alanine, as putative drug delivery system

The construction of well-defined nanostructures from the self-assembly of small organic molecules has gained increasing attention in the last decade [1]. The use of peptides, in particular, gives access to different ordered and, in some case, intricate morphologies [2]. For this high structural variability, peptide-based supramolecular assemblies are of valuable interest in biological systems as transmembrane pores models, ion channels mimics, and as drug delivery vehicles [3]. On the other hand, one drawback of using peptides for biomedical applications is their high susceptibility toward proteases and their short half-lives. The use of unnatural amino acids, such as alpha-alpha-disubstituted, beta-, and D-amino acids, is a profitable strategy to overcome these issues [3c, 4].