Assembling and releasing performance of supramolecular hydrogels formed from simple drug molecule as the hydrogelator

A simple drug compound, 4-oxo-4-(2-pyridinylamino) butanoic acid (defined as AP), was able to gel water at 4 wt% concentration under various conditions. In the superstructure, AP molecules assembled into fibrous aggregates driving by hydrogen bonds and pi-pi stacking interaction. The gels with different backbone structures released drug molecules in different speeds. (0 2007 Li Ming Tang. Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society. All rights reserved.