Rigid, self-assembled hydrogel composed of a modified aromatic dipeptide

The formation of a novel self-assembled hydrogel with remarkable mechanical rigidity by a very simple building block, the Fmoc-diphenylalanine peptide was studied. It was found that dissolving the Fmoc-diphenylalanine peptide at a higher concentration in aqueous solution resulted in the formation of a rigid material with macroscopic characteristics of a gel. Transmission electron microscopy was used to gain better insight into the molecular organization of the hydrogel. Small-deformation oscillatory measurements were used to evaluate the viscoelastic behavior of the self-assembled peptide hydrogel from Fmoc-diphenylalanine peptide final concentration on the hydrogel strength. The newly discovered hydrogel was also examined for its biocompatibility to be used as a scaffold in tissue engineering applications.