Rational Molecular Design of Stimulus-Responsive Supramolecular Hydrogels Based on Dipeptides

Stimuli-responsive supramolecular hydrogels comprising self-assembled nanofiber networks are attractive soft materials because of their potential application in materials science and bionanotechnology. Here, we describe a general strategy for the rational design of stimuli (redox-or photo-) responsive supramolecular hydrogelators by introducing stimulitriggered degradation units into the N-terminal of a dipeptide. We also demonstrate that its coupling with glucose oxidase allows us to produce a glucose-responsive insulin-releasing gel matrix.