Amphiphilic self-assembling peptides: formulation and elucidation of functional nanostructures for imaging and smart drug delivery.

The rational design of self-assembled peptide-based nanostructures for theranostics applications requires in-depth physicochemical characterization of the peptide nanostructures, to understand the mechanism and the interactions involved in the self-assembly, allowing a better control of the objects' physicochemical and functional properties for theranostic applications. In this work, several complementary characterization methods, such as dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, circular dichroism, Taylor dispersion analysis, and capillary electrophoresis, were used to study and optimize the self-assembly of pH-sensitive short synthetic amphiphilic peptides containing an RGD motif for active targeting of tumor cells and smart drug delivery. The combined methods evidenced the spontaneous formation of nanorods (L = 50 nm, d = 10 nm) at pH 11, stabilized by β-sheets.

Insights into diphenylalanine peptide self-assembled nanostructures for integration as nanoplatforms in analytical and medical devices.

New insights on the self-assembling process of diphenylalanine (FF) into nanostructures in view of its application as an alternative nanomaterial for bioanalytical and biomedical systems are presented in the frame of the present work. Experimental conditions, such as peptide concentration and solubilization medium pH, were explored to understand the hierarchical process involved in the formation of self-assembled nanostructures arising from the simple and short diphenylalanine peptide. Optical microscopic and TEM images supported by DLS data authenticated the hierarchical self-assembly outcoming from the original nature of the first nanostructures, showing individual nanotubes and vesicles stacking to grow well-defined microtubes.

Harlequin mice exhibit cognitive impairment, severe loss of Purkinje cells and a compromised bioenergetic status due to the absence of Apoptosis Inducing Factor.

The functional integrity of the central nervous system relies on complex mechanisms in which the mitochondria are crucial actors because of their involvement in a multitude of bioenergetics and biosynthetic pathways. Mitochondrial diseases are among the most prevalent groups of inherited neurological disorders, affecting up to 1 in 5000 adults and despite considerable efforts around the world there is still limited curative treatments. Harlequin mice correspond to a relevant model of recessive X-linked mitochondrial disease due to a proviral insertion in the first intron of the Apoptosis-inducing factor gene, resulting in an almost complete depletion of the corresponding protein.