Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth

Abstract Self-assembled supramolecular materials have gained extensive interest due to their ability to form structures with diverse physical, chemical, and biological properties. These characteristics arise from the precise arrangement of building blocks at the nanoscale. There is an unmet need to...

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Main Authors: Yoav Dan, Zohar A. Arnon, Yiming Tang, Mathar Kravikass, Yun Zhou, Rajkumar Misra, Om Shanker Tiwari, Linda J. W. Shimon, Roy Beck, Ehud Gazit, Guanghong Wei, Lihi Adler-Abramovich
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61331-x
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author Yoav Dan
Zohar A. Arnon
Yiming Tang
Mathar Kravikass
Yun Zhou
Rajkumar Misra
Om Shanker Tiwari
Linda J. W. Shimon
Roy Beck
Ehud Gazit
Guanghong Wei
Lihi Adler-Abramovich
author_facet Yoav Dan
Zohar A. Arnon
Yiming Tang
Mathar Kravikass
Yun Zhou
Rajkumar Misra
Om Shanker Tiwari
Linda J. W. Shimon
Roy Beck
Ehud Gazit
Guanghong Wei
Lihi Adler-Abramovich
author_sort Yoav Dan
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Self-assembled supramolecular materials have gained extensive interest due to their ability to form structures with diverse physical, chemical, and biological properties. These characteristics arise from the precise arrangement of building blocks at the nanoscale. There is an unmet need to efficiently manipulate crystalline materials’ solid-state packing and monitor the effect on growth at a single crystal level. Herein, we used N-capped diphenylalanine peptide module to study the conditions affecting lattice configuration. In addition to the canonical monoclinic crystal, we found the peptide to alternatively assemble into an orthorhombic crystalline form. Wide-angle X-ray analysis indicated that the sharp transition between the distinct crystalline polymorphic forms depends on solvent composition, indicating the impact of the immediate molecular milieu on the monomeric conformation and the interactions with crystals. Both experimental and molecular dynamics simulations corroborate the results and demonstrate that solution composition directs the monomers to adopt specific conformations and affects their interactions with pre-formed crystal templates, resulting in either crystal growth, steady-state, or disassembly. These notions provide a profound understanding of crystal polymorphism and growth mechanisms at the molecular level, enabling the advanced design of bio-inspired materials.
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spelling doaj-art-bad10431db99403e9e24da02a55f36a22025-08-20T03:03:25ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-07-0116111410.1038/s41467-025-61331-xEffect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growthYoav Dan0Zohar A. Arnon1Yiming Tang2Mathar Kravikass3Yun Zhou4Rajkumar Misra5Om Shanker Tiwari6Linda J. W. Shimon7Roy Beck8Ehud Gazit9Guanghong Wei10Lihi Adler-Abramovich11Department of Oral Biology, The Goldschleger School of Dental Medicine, Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel-Aviv UniversityDepartment of Oral Biology, The Goldschleger School of Dental Medicine, Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel-Aviv UniversityState Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, and Key Laboratory for Computational Physical Sciences (Ministry of Education), Department of Physics, Fudan UniversityJan Koum Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel-Aviv UniversityState Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, and Key Laboratory for Computational Physical Sciences (Ministry of Education), Department of Physics, Fudan UniversityDepartment of Oral Biology, The Goldschleger School of Dental Medicine, Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel-Aviv UniversityJan Koum Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel-Aviv UniversityDepartment of Chemical Research Support, The Weizmann Institute of ScienceJan Koum Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel-Aviv UniversityJan Koum Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel-Aviv UniversityState Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, and Key Laboratory for Computational Physical Sciences (Ministry of Education), Department of Physics, Fudan UniversityDepartment of Oral Biology, The Goldschleger School of Dental Medicine, Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel-Aviv UniversityAbstract Self-assembled supramolecular materials have gained extensive interest due to their ability to form structures with diverse physical, chemical, and biological properties. These characteristics arise from the precise arrangement of building blocks at the nanoscale. There is an unmet need to efficiently manipulate crystalline materials’ solid-state packing and monitor the effect on growth at a single crystal level. Herein, we used N-capped diphenylalanine peptide module to study the conditions affecting lattice configuration. In addition to the canonical monoclinic crystal, we found the peptide to alternatively assemble into an orthorhombic crystalline form. Wide-angle X-ray analysis indicated that the sharp transition between the distinct crystalline polymorphic forms depends on solvent composition, indicating the impact of the immediate molecular milieu on the monomeric conformation and the interactions with crystals. Both experimental and molecular dynamics simulations corroborate the results and demonstrate that solution composition directs the monomers to adopt specific conformations and affects their interactions with pre-formed crystal templates, resulting in either crystal growth, steady-state, or disassembly. These notions provide a profound understanding of crystal polymorphism and growth mechanisms at the molecular level, enabling the advanced design of bio-inspired materials.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61331-x
spellingShingle Yoav Dan
Zohar A. Arnon
Yiming Tang
Mathar Kravikass
Yun Zhou
Rajkumar Misra
Om Shanker Tiwari
Linda J. W. Shimon
Roy Beck
Ehud Gazit
Guanghong Wei
Lihi Adler-Abramovich
Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
Nature Communications
title Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
title_full Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
title_fullStr Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
title_full_unstemmed Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
title_short Effect of solvent-induced packing transitions on N-capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
title_sort effect of solvent induced packing transitions on n capped diphenylalanine peptide crystal growth
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61331-x
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