Supramolecular single-chain polymeric nanoparticles

Abstract

Nature has unparalleled control over the conformation and dynamics of its folded macromolecular structures. Nature's ability to arrange amino acids into a precise spatial organization by way of folding allows proteins to fulfill specific functions in an extremely efficient manner. Chemists and materials scientists have used the delicate structure-function relationships observed in proteins to elucidate nature's design principles. These insights have led to the development of various revolutionary macromolecular architectures, mimicking the structural features of proteins. In this review, we focus on the folding of single polymer chains into well-defined nanoparticles using supramolecular interactions and their possible use as enzyme mimics.