Solid phase synthesis, nanomaterials

Peptides and proteins provide significant promise as they can be prepared by a facile synthetic process (solid-phase synthesis in the case of peptides) or isolated in quantity (in the case of protein) and are amenable to derivatization or mutation. In the case of protein exploitation, the secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structures are also important for orientation and association. The viral capsid, and in particular its regular icosahedral surface, has been recently exploited as a molecular container and a biotemplate for nanomaterials (Figure 6b).The ability of viruses to enter all types of cells including human implies that they are ideally suited as noninfectious transport agents for wholly synthetic entities, not just nucleic acids. 

The fundamental goal of nanoparticle research is to assemble atoms in a controllable way and design nanostructured materials with the desired physical and chemical properties. A major part of the research in the field of nanoscience is dedicated to the development of synthesis routes to nanoparticles and nanostructures. Conventionally, solid-state reactions between powders have successfully been employed for the low-cost production of bulk metal oxides. However, to obtain metal oxide nanoparticles with well-defined shape, size, and composition, these solid-state routes are unsuitable. In contrast to these high-temperature processes, liquid-phase synthesis routes, and in particular sol-gel routes, offer better possibility to control the variation of structural, compositional, and morphological features of the final nanomaterials [1,2]. 

The most important nanomaterial synthesis methods include nanolithography techniques, template-directed syntheses, vapor-phase methods, vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) methods, solution-liquid-solid (SLS) approaches, sol-gel processes, micelle, vapor deposition, solvothermal methods, and pyrolysis methods [1, 2]. For many of these procedures, the control of size and shape, the flexibility in the materials that can be synthesized, and the potential for scaling up, are the main limitations. In general, the understanding of the growth mechanism of any as-... 

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