A novel self-assembly Lentinan-tetraphenylethylene​ composite with strong blue​ fluorescence in water and its properties

We report a unique self-assembly of lentinan, a triple helical β-(1→3)-glucan (t-LNT), in water. By molecular dynamics simulation, it was found that t-LNT aggregated preferentially along the chain direction to form long chains, accompanied by side-direction linkage to form branches. Transmission electron microscopy images demonstrated that t-LNT formed dendrite-like fibers, which further formed fishnet-like porous/mesoporous aggregates with increasing concentration. The meshes in the fishnet were ascribed to the intersection of branches. The major driving force for aggregation was expected to be hydrogen bonding between hydroxyl groups in t-LNT chains. Based on this self-assembly behavior, a novel composite was prepared from t-LNT and tetraphenylethylene (TPE) by entrapping TPE aggregates into the meshes of t-LNT fishnets. The as-prepared t-LNT/TPE composite largely enhanced the blue fluorescence of TPE in water, exhibiting stable optical property and good biocompatibility, and t-LNT is expected to show great potential as a carrier of hydrophobic molecules for biomedical application.