Over the last decade, the natural phenomenon of molecular self-assembly has undergone considerable transformation enabling the next phase of its technological advancement - the programming of novel nanostructured materials.

At this stage primary attention is given to approaches leading to specialist nanoconstructions, the design of which is assigned by and relates to specific biological functions. Critical in this respect is the hierarchical nature of self-assembly rendering the process a 'bottom-up' strategy towards a variety of nanoscale complexities.¹

Basic protein folding motifs such as a-helices and b-sheets are proving to be instrumental for prescriptive molecular engineering. Of particular interest are constructions necessarily functional in cellular environments. Herein biomimetic nanoscale designs based on peptide self-assembling systems possessing antimicrobial,² cell-supporting,³ encapsulating,⁴ and tuneable morphological⁵ properties will be presented.