Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative
Abstract Despite being a promising soft material embodied by molecular self-assembly, the formation mechanism of supramolecular gels remains challenging to fully understand. Here we provide molecular to nanoscopic insights into the formation mechanism of gel-forming fibers from a urea derivative. Hi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59032-6 |
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| author | Shinya Kimura Kurea Adachi Yoshiki Ishii Tomoki Komiyama Takuho Saito Naofumi Nakayama Masashi Yokoya Hikaru Takaya Shiki Yagai Shinnosuke Kawai Takayuki Uchihashi Masamichi Yamanaka |
| author_facet | Shinya Kimura Kurea Adachi Yoshiki Ishii Tomoki Komiyama Takuho Saito Naofumi Nakayama Masashi Yokoya Hikaru Takaya Shiki Yagai Shinnosuke Kawai Takayuki Uchihashi Masamichi Yamanaka |
| author_sort | Shinya Kimura |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Despite being a promising soft material embodied by molecular self-assembly, the formation mechanism of supramolecular gels remains challenging to fully understand. Here we provide molecular to nanoscopic insights into the formation mechanism of gel-forming fibers from a urea derivative. High-speed atomic force microscopy of the urea derivative revealed the presence of a lag phase prior to the formation of supramolecular fibers, suggesting a nucleation process. The fiber growth kinetics differ at both termini of the fiber, indicating a directional hydrogen-bonding motif by the urea units, which is supported by single-crystal X-ray crystallography of a reference compound. Moreover, we observed an intermittent growth pattern of the fibers with repeated elongation and pause phases. This unique behavior can be simulated by a theoretical block-stacking model. A statistical analysis of the concentration-dependent lag time on macroscopic observation of the gelation suggests the presence of a tetrameric or octameric nucleus of the urea molecules. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e924811de33540309bcd80d6e5a77cfd |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-e924811de33540309bcd80d6e5a77cfd2025-08-20T02:19:57ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-04-0116111310.1038/s41467-025-59032-6Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivativeShinya Kimura0Kurea Adachi1Yoshiki Ishii2Tomoki Komiyama3Takuho Saito4Naofumi Nakayama5Masashi Yokoya6Hikaru Takaya7Shiki Yagai8Shinnosuke Kawai9Takayuki Uchihashi10Masamichi Yamanaka11Meiji Pharmaceutical UniversityMeiji Pharmaceutical UniversityDepartment of Physics and Institute for Glyco-core Research (iGCORE), Nagoya UniversityMeiji Pharmaceutical UniversityDivision of Advanced Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Chiba UniversityCONFLEX CorporationMeiji Pharmaceutical UniversityDepartment of Life Science, Faculty of Life & Environmental Sciences, Teikyo University of ScienceDepartment of Applied Chemistry and Biotechnology, Graduate School of Engineering, Chiba UniversityDepartment of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka UniversityDepartment of Physics and Institute for Glyco-core Research (iGCORE), Nagoya UniversityMeiji Pharmaceutical UniversityAbstract Despite being a promising soft material embodied by molecular self-assembly, the formation mechanism of supramolecular gels remains challenging to fully understand. Here we provide molecular to nanoscopic insights into the formation mechanism of gel-forming fibers from a urea derivative. High-speed atomic force microscopy of the urea derivative revealed the presence of a lag phase prior to the formation of supramolecular fibers, suggesting a nucleation process. The fiber growth kinetics differ at both termini of the fiber, indicating a directional hydrogen-bonding motif by the urea units, which is supported by single-crystal X-ray crystallography of a reference compound. Moreover, we observed an intermittent growth pattern of the fibers with repeated elongation and pause phases. This unique behavior can be simulated by a theoretical block-stacking model. A statistical analysis of the concentration-dependent lag time on macroscopic observation of the gelation suggests the presence of a tetrameric or octameric nucleus of the urea molecules.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59032-6 |
| spellingShingle | Shinya Kimura Kurea Adachi Yoshiki Ishii Tomoki Komiyama Takuho Saito Naofumi Nakayama Masashi Yokoya Hikaru Takaya Shiki Yagai Shinnosuke Kawai Takayuki Uchihashi Masamichi Yamanaka Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative Nature Communications |
| title | Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative |
| title_full | Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative |
| title_fullStr | Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative |
| title_full_unstemmed | Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative |
| title_short | Molecular-level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative |
| title_sort | molecular level insights into the supramolecular gelation mechanism of urea derivative |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59032-6 |
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