Rapidly Recoverable Thixotropic Hydrogels from the Racemate of Chiral OFm Monosubstituted Cyclo(Glu-Glu) Derivatives

Langmuir. 2017 Dec 5;33(48):13821-13827. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b03527. Epub 2017 Nov 22.

Abstract

Both chiral OFm monosubstituted cyclo(l-Glu-l-Glu) and cyclo(d-Glu-d-Glu) display a robust gelation ability in a variety of organic solvents and water. In contrast to an individual enantiomer, their racemate can form rapidly recoverable thixotropic hydrogels with a remarkably shorter thixotropic recovery time. This unexpected thixotropic behavior is induced by the random arrangement of d- and l-enantiomers in the cell units, leading to the formation of "pseudoracemate", noncrystalline self-assemblies in the resulting 3D fibrous network.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't