Sequence‐Controlled Peptoid Polymers: Bridging the Gap between Biology and Synthetic Polymers

The intricate molecular nanoarchitectures required for biological function, result from the folding and assembly of sequence-defined polymers of amino acids, nucleotides and saccharides. This raises a fundamental question: can we extend this paradigm to synthetic materials? Materials scientists seek to create synthetic nanomaterials that rival the structural complexity found in nature, so that advanced functionalities can be introduced into stable materials. A new class of materials called peptoids are being used to bridge this gap between structural biology and polymer science. Peptoids can be made with precision control over monomer sequence from a chemically diverse set of monomers, to create information-rich polymers that can self-assemble into defined protein-like structures.