Achieving spatiotemporal control of molecular self-assembly associated with actuation of biological functions inside living cells remains a challenge owing to the complexity of the cellular environments and the lack of characterization tools. We present, for the first time, the organelle-localized self-assembly of a peptide amphiphile as a powerful strategy for controlling cellular fate. A phenylalanine dipeptide (FF) with a mitochondria-targeting moiety, triphenyl phosphonium (Mito-FF), preferentially accumulates inside mitochondria and reaches the critical aggregation concentration to form a fibrous nanostructure, which is monitored by confocal laser scanning microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The Mito-FF fibrils induce mitochondrial dysfunction via membrane disruption to cause apoptosis. The organelle-specific supramolecular system provides a new opportunity for therapeutics and in-depth investigations of cellular functions.

The low response rate of current cancer immunotherapy suggests the presence of few antigen-specific T cells and a high number of immunosuppressive factors in tumor microenvironment (TME). Here, we develop a syringeable immunomodulatory multidomain nanogel (iGel) that overcomes the limitation by reprogramming of the pro-tumoral TME to antitumoral immune niches. Local and extended release of immunomodulatory drugs from iGel deplete immunosuppressive cells, while inducing immunogenic cell death and increased immunogenicity. When iGel is applied as a local postsurgical treatment, both systemic antitumor immunity and a memory T cell response are generated, and the recurrence and metastasis of tumors to lungs and other organs are significantly inhibited. Reshaping of the TME using iGel also reverts non-responding groups to checkpoint blockade therapies into responding groups. The iGel is expected as an immunotherapeutic platform that can reshape immunosuppressive TMEs and synergize cancer immunotherapy with checkpoint therapies, with minimized systemic toxicity.

In this report, we demonstrate the confined assembly of polymer-tethered gold nanorods in anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) channels with the assistance of electric field (EF). Various interesting hybrid assemblies, such as single-, double-, triple-, or quadruple-helix, linear, and hexagonally packed structures are obtained by adjusting pore size in AAO channels, ligand length, and EF orientation. Correspondingly, surface plasmonic property of the assemblies can thus be tuned. This strategy, by coupling of external-field and cylindrically confined assembly, is believed to be a promising approach for generating ordered hybrid assemblies with hierarchical structures, which may find potential applications in photoelectric devices, biosensors, and data storage devices.

The synthesis of biophotonic crystals of insects, cubic crystalline single networks of chitin having large open-space lattices, requires the selective diffusion of monomers into only one of two non-intersecting water-channel networks embedded within the template, ordered smooth endoplasmic reticulum (OSER). Here we show that the topology of the circumferential bilayer of polymer cubosomes (PCs)—polymeric analogues to lipid cubic membranes and complex biological membranes—differentiate between two non-intersecting pore networks embedded in the cubic mesophase by sealing one network at the interface. Consequently, single networks having large lattice parameters (>240 nm) are synthesized by cross-linking of inorganic precursors within the open network of the PCs. Our results pave the way to create triply periodic structures of open-space lattices as photonic crystals and metamaterials without relying on complex multi-step fabrication. Our results also suggest a possible answer for how biophotonic single cubic networks are created, using OSER as templates.

Tailoring unique nanostructures of biocompatible and degradable polymers and the consequent elucidation of shape effects in drug delivery open tremendous opportunities not only to broaden their biomedical applications but also to identify new directions for the design of nanomedicine. Cellular organelles provide the basic structural and functional motif for the development of novel artificial nanoplatforms. Herein, aqueous onion‐like vesicles structurally mimicking multicompartmentalized cellular organelles by exhibiting exquisite control over the molecular assembly of poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PEO‐b‐PCL) semicrystalline amphiphiles are reported. Compared to in situ self‐assembly, emulsification‐induced assembly endows the resulting nanoaggregates of PEO‐b‐PCL with structural diversity such as helical ribbons and onion‐like vesicles through the molecular packing modification in the hydrophobic core with a reduction of inherent crystalline character of PCL. In particular, onion‐like vesicles composed of alternating walls and water channels are interpreted by nanometer‐scale 3D visualization via cryogenic‐electron tomo­graphy (cryo‐ET). Interestingly, the nature of the multi‐walled vesicles results in high drug‐loading capacity and stepwise drug release through hydrolytic cleavage of the PCL block. The crystalline arrangement of PCL at the molecular scale and the spatial organization of assembled structure at the nanoscale significantly affect the drug‐release behavior of PEO‐b‐PCL nanovehicles.

A simple and practical “solution‐biphase method” allows the preparation of efficient charge‐transporting 1D nanocrystals with coaxial p–n junctions. It involves gradual diffusion of a top layer of poor solvent (acetonitrile) into a bottom layer of poly(3‐hexyl thiophene)‐b‐poly(2‐vinyl pyridine) (P3HT‐b‐P2VP) conjugated polymers (CPs) and CdSe quantum dots (QDs) dissolved in chloroform. Initial interfacial crystallization‐driven assembly of CPs results in the formation of seeds consisting of dimeric QDs transversely bridged by CPs. Coaxial CPs/QDs hybrid NWs are generated by 1D growth of QDs‐dimeric seeds, enabling tracing of the CPs‐crystallization process via the QDs. Thus, well‐arranged QDs along the longitudinal axis of the NWs infer highly crystalline CPs with edge‐on orientation, as confirmed by electron tomography, UV–vis spectroscopy, and grazing‐incidence wide‐angle X‐ray scattering. This high cristallinity as well as the increased length of the resulting hybrid NWs in solution and the corresponding crystallite size in as‐cast film represent a significant improvement compared to the conventional “one‐pot addition method”. Moreover, although randomly QDs‐attached hybrids of P3HT homopolymer are produced by the solution‐biphase method, branched aggregates with micrometer‐long NW arms are generated from the crystal seeds containing multiple growth facets without precipitate, despite acetonitrile being a nonsolvent.

We report high-performance top-gate bottom-contact flexible polymer field-effect transistors (FETs) fabricated by flow-coating diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP)-based and naphthalene diimide (NDI)-based polymers (P(DPP2DT-T2), P(DPP2DT-TT), P(DPP2DT-DTT), P(NDI2OD-T2), P(NDI2OD-F2T2), and P(NDI2OD-Se2)) as semiconducting channel materials. All of the polymers displayed good FET characteristics with on/off current ratios exceeding 10. The highest hole mobility of 1.51 cm V s and the highest electron mobility of 0.85 cm V s were obtained from the P(DPP2DT-T2) and P(NDI2OD-Se2) polymer FETs, respectively. The impacts of the polymer structures on the FET performance are well-explained by the interplay between the crystallinity, the tendency of the polymer backbone to adopt an edge-on orientation, and the interconnectivity of polymer fibrils in the film state. Additionally, we demonstrated that all of the flexible polymer-based FETs were highly resistant to tensile stress, with negligible changes in their carrier mobilities and on/off ratios after a bending test. Conclusively, these high-performance, flexible, and durable FETs demonstrate the potential of semiconducting conjugated polymers for use in flexible electronic applications.

The fullerene-based PSCs based on novel PNTz4T-1F polymer processed from a halogen-free solvent system demonstrated an outstanding PCE of 11.77% due to the optimum molecular ordering/packing and morphology.