Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes as Fluorescent Probes for Monitoring the Self-Assembly and Morphology of Peptide/Polymer Hybrid Hydrogels

Hydrogels formed via supramolecular self-assembly of fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl (Fmoc)-conjugated amino acids provide excellent scaffolds for 3D cell culture, tissue engineering, and tissue recovery matrices. Such hydrogels are usually characterized by rheology or electron microscopy, which are invasive and cannot provide real-time information. Here, we incorporate near-infrared fluorescent single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) into Fmoc-diphenylalanine hydrogels as fluorescent probes, reporting in real-time on the morphology and time-dependent structural changes of the self-assembled hydrogels in the transparency window of biological tissue. We further demonstrate that the gelation process and structural changes upon the addition of cross-linking ions are transduced into spectral modulations of the SWCNT-fluorescence. Moreover, morphological differences of the hydrogels induced by polymer additives are manifested in unique features in fluorescence images of the incorporated SWCNTs. SWCNTs can thus serve as optical probes for noninvasive, long-term monitoring of the self-assembly gelation process and the fate of the resulting peptide hydrogel during long-term usage.