Regulating Higher-Order Organization through the Synergy of Two Self-Sorted Assemblies.

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is the natural fibrous scaffold that regulates cell behavior in a hierarchical manner. By mimicking the dynamic and reciprocal interactions between ECM and cells, higher-order molecular self-assembly (SA), mediated through the dynamic growth of scaffold-like nanostructures assembled by different molecular components, was developed. Designed and synthesized were two self-sorted coumarin-based gelators, a peptide molecule and a benzoate molecule, which self-assemble into nanofibers and nanobelts, respectively, with different dynamic profiles.